The Science of Magic
by Oralindie
Summary: [Stargate X Harry Potter] SG1 is thrown for a loop when a part of Sam’s past is revealed that none of them ever could have guessed. Note: Daniel is not a wizard.
1. Chapter 1

**The Science of Magic**

Summary: A joint work by FC and me. SG-1 is thrown for a loop when a part of Sam's past is revealed that none of them ever could have guessed.** Note:** So far, neither FC nor I have seen any fic like this, meaning Daniel is not a wizard.

Disclaimer: Neither FC nor I owns Stargate SG-1, the rights of which belong to someone I don't want to look up, or Harry Potter, which belongs to J.K Rowling and assorted other people. I don't want to look up them either.

**Note:**Hey everyone! This is FC and I's latest fic. We colaberated and decided to write this together. As in, I write some, she writes some; so if you notice that the style changes, it's probably because the writer was switched.

We hope you enjoy it!

* * *

The airman entered the briefing room almost at a run, throwing a salute with poorly contained impatience and, when General Hammond nodded an 'at ease' toward him, broke into babble punctuated with hastily added signs of respect.

"There's an owl on base, sir! An owl, flying–sir–flying through the base; no one's been able–sir–able to stop it, and it's on level—" the poor man was cut off when the owl in question swooped gracefully through the door and landed neatly on Sam's shoulder, who had closed her eyes the moment she had heard the word 'owl'.

There was silence in the room for a moment, all eyes focused on the red major and the bird preening on her shoulder, before Sam reached up a hand and nimbly detached the slightly crumpled envelope from the bird's leg and laid it on the table in front of her. "It won't object to be taken out now," she told the General softly and reached to stroke the owl's feathered head.

"Airman Siddens, take the bird out," Hammond said almost automatically and the strained, disbelieving silence persisted until Siddens gathered the bird in shaky hands and backed out of the room deferentially. Then, all eyes turned to Sam and the letter before her.

Sam kept her eyes down and looking at the letter in front of her, the neatly written 'Sammie' on the front staring at her unapologetically. She took a deep breath, afraid to look up at the confused faces around her. Deciding that she should just get it done and over with, she looked up and met the eyes of everyone sitting at the conference table.

Hammond's voice asked the question all of them were thinking: "Major Carter, would you care to explain this." Ok, not a question; an order. But she couldn't; by saying what was really behind the letter, she wouldn't be just exposing herself, she would be exposing a community that had existed for thousands of years in secret. Not even Daniel had the faintest idea that it existed.

Sam put on her best confused face, but tried not to make it look too puzzled so that they wouldn't immediately know she was holding something back. "I can't, sir."

"You can't, or you won't?"

"Neither. Sir, how would you explain it if _you_ had an owl land on your shoulder in the middle of a briefing?"

"Well, Carter, that would depend on whether I was surprised by it or not," Jack drawled from across the table, leaving the _Which you obviously weren't _unspoken but obvious to everyone at the table, and only years of military conditioning let Sam repress the urge to glare at him for making this harder than it already was. She had to choose her words carefully, balancing a thin knife's edge between going against the secret heritage she had been born with and the conditioning to answer her chosen job had thrust upon her.

"Well, Major?" Hammond asked after a few seconds of Sam staring down at the letter blankly, and she blinked and looked up like she had almost forgotten they were there. If she knew who the letter was from, and she though she did, there was another load to burden her—he hadn't spoken to her in over a year, and now seemed an odd time to start.

"Sir, I'm sorry, but I can't tell you everything, even under direct order." Eyebrows shot up all over the table, and she continued under the beginnings of a blush. "This letter is from my half-brother." _True._ "He's kind of eccentric—" _Also true, if you call turning into an animal every full moon eccentric—which is stretching the definition, I suppose. _"—and this is the way he prefers to send his letters." _True. Leaving things out, but essentially true. _"I'm sure he didn't mean to cause alarm or seem to pose any kind of threat when he sent it." _True, but dammit, Remus, you could have been a little more careful!

* * *

_

"_'Kind of eccentric'_? What is _that_ supposed to mean!" Jack glared at the bag of tortilla chips in front of him, as if willing it to defy him.

Daniel didn't answer; instead he sat on Jack's couch, thinking about the briefing two hours ago. After Sam had finished her 'explanation', she had stood up and excused herself, leaving the base before anyone had gotten over the shock of what she had said. Sam. Samantha Carter, his colleague and _friend_, had basically told him that the incident was none of his business. And not just him! She said it to Hammond too! Her boss and superior!

To put it bluntly, Daniel was confused as hell. Which was never a good thing for him.

He was snapped out of his thoughts when a hand appeared in his face. Daniel automatically glared as he turned to the offender, only to see Jack.

"Daniel. Daniel! Are you okay? You've been out there for awhile now."

Daniel creased his eyebrows. "Huh? Oh, ya." Sighing in exasperation, Jack flopped back into his chair and covered his eyes with his hand. "What do you think she was talking about, Jack? Or rather, what do you think she _wasn't_ talking about?"

"How the hell should I know?" Jack snapped back, and Daniel tried hard to stay calm. It had to be even harder for the other man knowing that Sam had brushed him off as both a close friend _and_ a boss, and Daniel just _knew_ that they had feelings for each other they weren't letting on to. Gazing at a chip philosophically, Daniel shrugged. "Well, we just have to wait for her to tell us what's going on." _And hope that she trusts us enough to do just that_.

* * *

Sam glared at the letter, willing it to say something, anything, other than what it did. There was so much she had missed, so much she had forgotten. She had left the wizarding world twenty years ago, and now she was hard pressed even to remember her half-brother's face.

_Voldemort's back, Sam. Very few of us believe it, but he's back._ Sam had been long gone by the time Voldemort was defeated, but she remembered it—remembered the letters she had gotten, where Remus had poured out everything—two of his best friends dead, a third accused of their murder. She was all he had—their mother had died in his third year, his father before he had started school. There were still pictures, faded but still moving tirelessly, that Remus had sent her during school—a group of four boys, or sometimes two or one or three, but always the same faces, laughing. She had even met them once, during one of her few trips back to England, and she had felt sad when she heard of James's death, and glad when she learned of Sirius's innocence; but that had been the last correspondence she had received, and she had gotten it over a year ago. And now…_Voldemort's back_.

Sam sighed and ran a hand through her short hair. _This is not good. This is_ **_definitely_**_ not good!_ She collapsed onto her couch, trying to think. His letter had been vague, probably so that it wouldn't mean much in case it was intercepted. Of course, if it had been intercepted by base security, _that_ would have been a disaster! She would have to warn him about never sending anything to her at work again. But the letter, back to the letter. It had only said what was essential; that Voldemort was back, and the Phoenix was back home—in other words, the Order was back together. Not much to go on, but she would have to go; she couldn't just let him face this alone, couldn't abandon the first world and family she had ever known. She had to see her brother.

* * *

Jack, Daniel and Teal'c walked up the path to Sam's house, Daniel sighing before ringing her doorbell. They stood on the front porch a few minutes, waiting. When it became apparent that she wasn't going to answer, they tried again, only to find that they were either being ignored, or she wasn't home.

Daniel turned to Jack. "Do you think she's here?"

Jack looked around, worried. "She _should_ be here. She never goes anywhere without her car." He drew his gun and nodded to the other two, gesturing for them to go around the back and see if anything was out of place. Each drew their weapon and did as they were told, Daniel circling around on the right, Teal'c the left. When they met around at the back, neither of them seeing anything out of the ordinary, Daniel left Teal'c and headed back to Jack.

"There isn't anything back there."

Jack nodded. "Okay, time to improvise." He kicked the door open and went inside, pistol at the ready. He and Daniel swept the house but found nothing, until they entered Sam's bedroom. The place was a mess. There were clothes everywhere.

Jack looked around. "Someone was in a hurry to leave."

"So it would seem. What do you think she was doing?"

"I don't know, but it looks like she didn't want anyone to know she was leaving."

"So, where is she? And how did she get there?"

* * *

Sam emerged from the fireplace at Number 12, Grimmauld place in a fit of coughing, barely even registering Remus coming forward to take her suitcase and envelope her in a warm hug. She wiped her streaming eyes and hugged him back, noting with worry the way his shoulder blades stuck out and the grey she could see in his hair. She pulled back to study him further, and frowned.

"Remus, you look terrible!"

"Nice to see you too, Sam," he smiled at her. "You look wonderful, though. Your job's going well? I still can't believe you went military…"

"Yeah, though it didn't help things having an owl fly through base," she retorted, beating him to her suitcase and hoisting it before he could protest. He shook his head a little and beckoned her over to the door on the other side of the threadbare carpet, and she followed him out down a hallway and up a creaking flight of stairs, wrinkling her nose a little at a display of—house-elf heads?'—mounted on the wall. Ah, wizarding houses—she could never decide whether the simple pleasure and obvious magic in having your mirror greet you good morning was worth things like temperamental cutlery. This house seemed almost…dark, though, and a lot dirtier than she would have thought.

"Hey, Remus!"

They both turned, and Remus grinned and beckoned the longhaired, slightly grimy man at the foot of the stairs forward. "Sirius! You remember Sam, don't you?"

Her eyebrows rose involuntarily as she looked at the man now walking towards her. "Sirius? It's been awhile. You look…"

"Terrible, I'm sure," he grinned, and reached out to shake her free hand. "Of course I remember meeting Remus's pretty half-sister. Welcome to the Ancient House of Black," and he swept his arm down in an exaggerated bow.

Sam laughed. "Cute. It appears that you did learn _some _manners after school." Grinning at the familiar sarcasm, he stood up straight and walked toward her, enveloping her in a brotherly hug.

"It's good to see you, Sam."

Sam smiled, "You too."

Separating, they looked at Remus, who was smiling broadly. "So, now that everyone is once again acquainted, would you like the tour?"

Sam looked around at her dark and dingy surroundings. "Well, why not!" Then she playfully added, "Not like there's much else to do." Laughing more than he had in ages and hooking her arm through his, Remus began the somewhat long, and rather boring tour of Grimmauld place; unless you counted his sarcastic remarks about every room, that is.

* * *

Harry was freezing cold, to the point where it hurt to move because his joints were so stiff. Not that the area around him was exceptionally cold, but the only-the-gods-knew-how–long flight at altitudes of a couple hundred feet sure was. Hearing Moody say something to him, he turned to look at the auror, who handed him a piece of parchment and told him to memorize what it said. Opening it, Harry found written in loopy letters:

_The headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix may be found at _

_Number twelve, Grimmauld Place, London_

"What's the Order of the—?"

"Not here boy! Wait till we're inside!" The parchment was then snatched out of his hands and promptly burned to ashes.

"But where's—?"

Lupin whispered to him quietly. "Think about what you've just memorized."

His brain running through the newly acquired information, Harry was shocked to see a building begin to appear between numbers eleven and thirteen. Shortly, the whole structure was visible. But before Harry had a chance to really look at it, a paranoid Moody quickly ushered him in.

Once inside, Harry got a short glimpse of a rather dark and dusty house before he found himself in the midst of one of Mrs. Weasley's hugs. "Oh, Harry dear, are you ok? How was the trip? My! What have they been feeding you! You're all skin and bones!" She turned to someone behind her, but the person was blocked from his view by the woman in front of him. "Sam? Would you please take Harry down to the kitchens?"

When Mrs. Weasley finally moved, Harry found himself looking at a very beautiful young blond who was talking to Lupin. She turned and smiled. "Sure, Molly."

Lupin saw Harry's dazed look and hit his head lightly, "I almost forgot! Sam, this is Harry. Harry, I would like you to meet my sister, Samantha Carter."

* * *

Love it? Hate it? Really couldn't care less? Leave a review and tell us all about it! Flames are welcome—FC's running out of ammo for her flamethrower.

Next chapter: More SGC and HP fun, and Why Sam Left The Wizarding World! (Possibly)


	2. Chapter 2

**The Science of Magic**

**Season:** end of 4, because FC's knowledge only stretches that far. Oh, and from the beginning of Order of the Phoenix, in case it's not obvious.

Enjoy!

* * *

**SGC, Cheyenne Mountain**

Practically sprinting down the hall, Jack, Daniel and Teal'c made their way to Hammond's office. They had tried to call earlier when they were on the road, but the line had been busy. So, here they were, running through the SGC, knocking any airmen who got in their way aside, and glaring at anyone who passed just for the heck of it. Well, Jack was the only one doing that last bit.

Reaching the door that lead to the General's office, Daniel only managed to knock once before Jack threw the door open, not really caring for formalities since Carter was missing. Carter. Oh, God; he desperately hoped that she was okay, that she was safe. He didn't know what he would do if he lost Sam too. If she was dead he would kill the son of a bit—

"Colonel! _What_ is the meaning of this?" Hammond's voice snapped his mind away from those particular thoughts.

"Carter's missing, _sir_. And—"

Daniel cut in. "We went to her house to check on her; her car was in her driveway—"

Jack cut _him _off, "—And when we went into her house her room was a disaster, like someone had gone through and ransacked the place, sir."

"O'Neill is correct, General Hammond."

Hammond gave them a disbelieving look. "Did you even _think_ about calling me before you stormed in here?"

"We tried, General; but your line was busy," Daniel answered.

Hammond shook his head, confusing SG-1. "She didn't tell you?" The blank looks gave him answer enough. "Major Carter is fine. She called me earlier requesting extended yearlong leave. She said there was a family matter she had to attend to."

Daniel felt like Sam had just betrayed him. And Jack looked worse. Even Teal'c looked disappointed by her actions.

Trying to keep a straight face, Daniel asked Hammond the one question they were all desperate to know: "Where did she go?"

The General shook his head. "She didn't share the information, Dr. Jackson, and she wasn't required to. Frankly, I have no idea where she is now."

* * *

At the moment, Sam was setting the table and avoiding the flying cutlery courtesy of the twins, her mind full of what she had just learned. It was worse than she had thought, and she had to say, she was glad she was here. Everyone was so nice, and it was wonderful to see Remus again, and Sirius—an image of warm brown eyes and strong hands and a handsome face briefly filled her vision, and she shook her head as she sat down to dinner, pulling out a seat alongside Tonks. She was not thinking about this. No way was she going to start feeling guilty or…or missing him. Them. _You do NOT miss him, Sam. Well, okay, you do, but—just as a teammate. Because you miss Daniel too, and Teal'c, so it's only natural that you'd miss him too. It's no big deal that you miss his jokes and the way he can always make you feel better and the way he smiles and how you never feel worried around him because you know as long as he's there it's going to be okay—shutting up now. _

Sam sighed and tried to listen to Remus's discussion with Mr. Weasley about goblins, but just as she had given up and began to watch Tonk's nose change, Harry's friend Hermione raised her head and asked, "What do you do, Ms. Lupin? I don't think you've told us…"

Sam looked up, startled, and across the table Remus raised an eyebrow. "It's Carter, actually…My mother divorced my father when I was very young. And I'm a major in the air force."

The girl forgot to be embarrassed in her rush for new information. "Really? What do you do?" Harry and Ron were listening now, and Tonks and Ginny turned their heads as well.

_What do I do? I don't think you've believe me if I told you. _"I work in Deep Space Radar Telemetry at the moment."

Hermione frowned a little. "What does that mean, exactly? I've never heard of anything like it before…"

Sam smiled. She was smart, wasn't she? "It's mostly telescopic work, calculations with the various planetary bodies, things like that."

Hermione nodded. "And…what do you do? No offense, but I can't really see why a major in the air force would be doing that…"

Unheard by Sam, Ron shook his head and elbowed her. "Way to interrogate her," he hissed in Hermione's ear. "Oh, hush," she whispered back. "You just think she's attractive, that's the only reason you care…"

"Actually, I have PhDs in astrophysics and biomechanics," Sam told her, unaware of the muted conversation being held, "So I'm one of the scientists working there at the moment."

Hermione looked suitably impressed, and Ron grinned. "Gorgeous **and **a genius, eh, Harry?" Harry nodded and Hermione kicked Ron under the table perhaps harder than was really appropriate. "Ingrates!" she hissed and turned away.

* * *

Back in Colorado, Jack sighed and stared morosely at the beer in his hand. She was gone. Sa—Carter was gone. To places unknown, for some unknown relative. Without telling them a word about it. Which really shouldn't irritate him as much as it did. 

Jack frowned, and drained the rest of his beer. Why **did** it irritate him that much? Daniel was upset too, of course; in fact, Jack had just barely avoided a therapy session disguised as a drink between friends as they left the mountain, and he thought that even Teal'c was as upset as the big guy ever got, but why did he care so much? Of course, there was bound to be team repercussions, since no one could have her smile, and her determination, and her lovely eyes—whoa. No one could—fit in as well, that was it, since they'd been together—as teammates, just teammates, only teammates—for so long. That was a good reason; one that would stand up to human interrogation, but—it wasn't the real one. Wasn't the real reason why he was currently getting up to retrieve another beer from the fridge.

Beverage in hand, he flopped back onto his couch. Why was he so upset? Why did he feel so…betrayed? Betrayed…"I trusted her," he said out loud, testing the words on his tongue, and was mildly surprised that he found them to be true. He trusted her. Not a big thing, of course, quite natural really, but it was…different. He **trusted** her. Trusting someone, really **trusting** them, was a feeling that went down deep, that you ended up knowing in the same way you knew that if you dropped an apple it would fall down instead of up. He trusted Sa—Carter to never let him down, to always be there for the team—for him—with a tired smile and a solution. Trusted her implicitly, so that he would never question her if she asked him to do something. He would jump off a cliff if she asked him to, he realized, jump and not even worry if he would stop falling on the way down, because she had asked. And he trusted her.

He hadn't trusted Sara. Well, he had in the normal way; in the way he trusted the general and the doc and most of the people in his life. But he hadn't **trusted** her. Hadn't been able to accept what she told him, that there was nothing she, him, or anybody else could have done for—for Charlie. Hadn't trusted her enough, maybe. But with Sam…he implicitly accepted what she told him as the truth, knew that she would give her life for him, and knew that he would give his up for her. And then…she had betrayed him. Had gone off, by herself, without a word to anyone, without a word to **him**, for a whole damn year.

Okay. That was true; made sense. Explained the bone-deep disbelief, the hurt, even the anger. But…it didn't explain why he was already missing her voice and the faint scent of floral shampoo that never quite got washed out.

_Don't go there, Jack,_ several little voices—the smart voice and the one in uniform, it looked like—said to him warningly. _Trust me, don't go there. There are some things you don't want to know. Some things it's better not to know._

"Ah, go to hell" Jack told it defiantly before he realized that he was talking to himself and shut up, casting around a quick look to make sure no one had wandered in to hear him telling himself to go to hell. No one. Good. He'd never live that down. He meant what he said, though, and ignored the warnings smart Jack and military Jack were repeating in an ominous tone.

_I know that I feel **something** for Sa—Carter. Aw hell, Sam. _That was true. He could remember the Zay-tarc testing like it had just happened, remember how painful it had been, admitting that while she was right there, while he knew that in a moment he would have to forget it, pretend it never happened, and for a moment he thought that maybe his voices were right. But he had already started this, and never let it be said that Colonel Jack O'Neill backed down from a challenge.

_I…care for her. But what does that mean, care? I think she's gorgeous, that's true. Of course it's true, she is. _His jaw had dropped for a moment when he first saw her, his mind resonating with a single, intelligent though: _Damn_. The spark of attraction had only grown, through the time where they had the disease and the dress incident and…too many times to count, he had found himself just looking at her, marveling at the clarity of her blue eyes and the way she walked and—_okay, lets just accept the fact that Sam's hot as a given and move on. She's brave, tough, strong, funny, smart, nice…_Something was coming, up from the very depths of his brain, a little awareness that was creeping closer and suddenly Jack thought that the smart voice was right and he should just drop it now and pretend he never did this because he really didn't want to know, need to know that—_I love her. I love Sam. Carter. I'm in love with my 2IC. _

He needed another beer.

* * *

Sam sat on her bed, knees drawn up to her chest, thinking. Just thinking. It had been a long day, and she needed some time to herself so she could sort things out. Unfortunately, fate seemed to have other ideas. 

A knock on her door brought her out of her thoughts. When she glanced up, she saw the door open a little and Remus stick his head in. "You okay, Sam?" She just nodded, not really feeling like talking. Seeing her reaction, her brother walked in and closed the door behind him, then silently walked over to her.

Sam felt the bed shift under his weight as he sat down, but she didn't move. But when he scooted toward her and put his comforting arm around her, she laid her head on his shoulders, needing the comfort.

"Sam, what's wrong?"

She just sighed and sat there for a few minutes. "Remus, did you tell them?"

He looked taken back. "Of course not! But that isn't what this is about, is it?"

Sam shook her head, but didn't say anymore. Remus placed his other arm around her and pulled her into a hug. "Sam, what is it?"

Sighing, she separated and turned toward him, her face and voice distressed as she spoke. "I didn't tell them."

Lupin furrowed his brow. "Tell who?"

Sam hung her head. "My team. I didn't tell them I was leaving."

Her brother pulled her into a hug again. "Don't worry, I'm sure they'll understand."

Still in his embrace, she shook her head. "No, they won't. They'll be crushed." She pulled away from him, tears in her eyes. "They trust me, Remus! They trust me with their lives every single day, and I ran off without telling them!" Remus pulled her back into his embrace. He loved his sister—she had been both a mother and a friend to him when they were small—and having her here was wonderful, but he could tell that leaving as she had was slowly begin to tear Sam up inside. "Shhh. Sam, don't worry. Everything will be fine."

She looked up at him, still fighting back tears. It wasn't all her military training, either—even when she had been a little girl, she hadn't liked to cry. And to be like this—"Sam. Is—what else is bothering you?"

She was surprised, he could tell. "Nothing! I mean…nothing. Really. I—I'm fine."

Now he **knew** she was hiding something—this was just how she'd been when she stole his toy broomstick when she was seven and he was six. "Sam…"

She looked away, and he sighed. "I'm your brother, Sam. You can trust me. I promise."

She was silent for a long moment, both of them waiting for the other to give in; but Remus had always been more patient than Sam was. "It's…" She sighed again, fisting her hand against her eyes. "It's the colonel."

His eyebrows raised—this he hadn't expected. "Jack, right? Is there a problem?" Brotherly instinct was kicking in now. "Sam, is he nice to you? Are you—"

"Remus, stop!" She was halfway between laughing and crying. "It's not that. It's nothing like that. Ja—Colonel O'Neill is…is…" What was he?

"Do you love him, Sammie?"

She turned to look at her brother with a gasp, and found him smiling a little. "How dare—?" But the words wouldn't go away now—they were in her head, taunting her. _Here we are, _they seemed to say, almost gleefully. _See? We got in anyway. You tried to keep us out, because you didn't want to know, didn't want to accept it—but here we are. Can't deny it anymore, can you, Sam?_ She let out her breath in a long exhale, and was surprised to find herself feeling—better? "Yeah," she told him, and, surprisingly, gave him the tiniest grin back. "I think I do."

Remus was grinning now, but it faded away quickly. "And you're worried because you didn't say anything to him?"

Sam nodded, and Remus sighed. "Sam…Do you really want to be here?" She looked at him in shock, but he continued hastily. "Not that I don't want you to be here—I do, really. I'm so, so glad you came, Sam—but there's where you belong now. You have people you love there. I know you can't tell me what it is you do, but you have a cause. If…if you want to go back…"

Sam hugged him tightly, and noticed again the thinness in his shoulder blades, his slight frame. She couldn't leave him. He was family, and family stuck together. "I'm staying, Remus. This…" her voice faded for a moment as she looked around her—took in the snoring portrait on the wall, the sound of rising and falling voices downstairs, the simple **feel** of magic, of enchantment, in the air, that proclaimed even to muggles that this was a wizarding house, and part of a different world than the one they knew. "I belonged here once, Remus. This used to be my **home**." Both of them knew that she wasn't talking about the Black house. "This was my first fight. I owe it to you, to everyone, to do what I can to help. I know there's not much, but—"

Remus put a comforting arm around her shoulders. "There's a lot you can do to help, Sam. And it's still your home. You still belong here."

She wanted to protest, but couldn't. "Do you want me to stay, Remus?"

He couldn't lie to her. She would know if he did, and besides…he didn't want to, selfish as it might be. "Of course, Sammie."

"Then I will," she said decisively, and stood up, and Remus couldn't stop a grin from spreading across his face. "I'm glad," he told her, getting up as well, and his grin turned slightly more evil as he considered something. "And…if you were worried about being useful…"

"Do I even want to know?" she asked him half-seriously, and he grinned again. "Maybe not. But…" he drew the word out, enjoying the teasing. "Minerva mentioned that they need an Arithmancy teacher at Hogwarts."

* * *

Hope you liked it! We didn't get to Why Sam Left the Wizarding World this time, sorry, but we'll have it eventually. Cookies, baked by FC since she actually has cookie dough in the freezer, to anyone who can guess it. And apparently reviewer responses are persona non grata around here now, so thanks so, SO much to everyone who reviewed. We are truly honored to create work that others read and enjoy. 

That said, the little button down there is calling your name. Go on…you know you want to…

See you same bat time, same bat place.


	3. Chapter 3

**The Science of Magic**

Disclaimer: We don't own Stargate.

FC: Well, not in _this_ reality anyway. Once I went to this one place where we di—

Ora: #clamps hand over FC's mouth and looks fearfully at the Lawyers outside her window# We don't own it.

* * *

Sam stared at Remus, completely caught off guard by his offer. "B-but…" She trailed off before regaining her composure and continuing at light speed. "But I never even went to Hogwarts! How am I supposed to teach a class there if I've never been there! Am I even qualified! Not to mention the fact you've seemed to forget that I left because of wh—!"

"Sam! Sam, slow down!" He put up his hands defensively, not really trusting his military-trained sister when she went off on a rant like this. "Sam, you don't have anything to worry about. Minerva said she already talked to Dumbledore, and he agreed that you were more than qualified!" Since she still wasn't looking too sure, he grabbed her shoulders gently. "Sammie, you said you wanted to fit in, to be able to help in some way; _this_ will help."

She brought her hand up to her forehead, trying to think. "I don't know. Let me sleep on it, okay?" He nodded and she smiled, saying, "Thanks. Hey, we better get down stairs. Molly might think we're lost!"

Laughing, the two siblings made their way downstairs, each silently praying that they had escaped dish-duty.

Back downstairs, they walked into the dining room just as Sirius said angrily, "—don't intend telling him more than he _needs to know_, Molly. But as he was the one who saw Voldemort come back, he has more right than most to—"

"He's not a member of the Order of the Phoenix!" Molly cried, beginning to tremble in anger. "He's only fifteen and—"

"—and he's dealt with as much as most in the Order, and more than some—" Sirius retorted hotly as Lupin followed the speakers with a creased brow and Sam bit her lip a little, worriedly. It was obvious who they were fighting over, as Harry was looking like he couldn't decide to be angry or touched. They stayed that way, standing silently by the door, until Lupin said quietly in response to one of Molly's cries, "Personally, I think it better that Harry gets the facts—not all the facts, Molly, but the general picture—from us, rather than a garbled version from…others."

Molly looked around desperately for an ally. "Sam, what do you think?"

Sam was quiet for a moment, and when she spoke it was tentative. She had her opinions about this, but that didn't mean she felt comfortable about giving them. She hardly knew anyone there, personally at least. "I think…he's gone through so much…and maybe you're right, Molly, and he's not ready to know and be involved, but he already is, whether anyone likes it or not. And that fact won't be changed by keeping him from knowing things that he may genuinely need to know."

That was the last Sam talked that evening, except to bid everyone good night when she headed upstairs soon after. Her mind was too full of thoughts about too many different subjects for peace.

* * *

Jack stood in his kitchen, beer in hand, staring at the phone. He should call, he really should; but he was nervous. No, not nervous. He was scared. Scared about what he might find out; find out what she had never told him, never told any of them. Family emergency? Why hadn't she told them? Why hadn't she trusted them? He loved her, dammit! Didn't that mean anything?

_Hold on, Jack, _the smart voice told him. _You never said anything. How could she know?_

He cursed the voice, and himself.

He needed to call. Now, before he lost his nerve. Reassuring himself, he picked up the phone quickly and dialed the number to Sam's only living relative; on this planet at least.

"Hello?"

"Hey, is this Mark Carter?"

"Yeah. Who is this?"

"Colonel Jack O'Neill. I work with Sam."

"Oh! Colonel, it's ni—" he cut himself short, and Jack could hear panic in the words that followed. "Oh, God. Is Sam okay? Did something happen to her? God, oh, God. What happened!"

"Mark! Calm down! As far as I know, she's fine."

"As far as you…Colonel, did something happen to my sister?"

"I was hoping you could answer that."

"I'm sorry?"

"A couple hours ago Sam vanished. She didn't talk to anyone except General Hammond, and she asked for extended leave because of a family matter. I assumed that she was leaving to see you."

"No, she hasn't been here…" There was a long pause at the other end of the line. "But…I think that I might know where she could be."

"Where?"

"London."

Jack spluttered, staring at the phone. "**London**? She had family in **London**?"

Unseen, Mark nodded. "Sam actually didn't live with Dad and me until she was almost twelve; did she ever tell you that?"

Jack wanted to be angry that she had kept so much from them, but that could be later. Now… "No, she didn't. What happened?"

Mark sighed. "See, after Mom died, Dad married again, and Sam was born, but Dad and Sam's mom got divorced when she was just a few months old, so she took Sam with her when she went back to England. She got married again there, and had another kid—Remus, I think his name was. Sam lived with them until after she turned eleven, and then her mom sent her back here to live with us."

"Why?"

"I don't know. Sam kept in really close touch with Remus, though—sent letters back and forth all the time, and she visited him a few times. So, if it's family business, that's probably where she is."

"Thanks," Jack told the man on the other end of the phone distractedly, and then almost shouted into the phone before he forgot, "What's the address? Where does this…Remus live?"

He could practically feel Mark's shrug on the other end of the line. "I dunno; I've never even met the guy." There was silence for a minute, and then Mark continued. "Hey…make sure she's okay, will you? She was only around for six years before she entered the air force, but she's my sister."

"I will," Jack promised. "I'll make sure she's safe."

* * *

_Daniel was standing in his friend Sarah's dorm, awkwardly looking around at the mess in the small room. Outside the window, Daniel saw a hoard of students clustered around a cart with a sign reading 'free self-serve ice cream'. "Um…Sarah?"_

"_Ya?"_

_He watched her dig around her desk, throwing papers every which-way. "What are you looking for?"_

"_Oh, a mummy for McConnell's…I know it's here somewhere…" A knock on her door brought the search to a halt._

"_Who is that?"_

_She panicked, "Ah! It's Jenna! Quick, hide!" She looked around the room, looking for somewhere for him to go. Daniel stood there, listening to the repetitive knocking, which became a ringing. Wait. Doors **don't** ring..._

Daniel opened his eyes with a moan. What had woken him up from that particularly odd dream?

The phone rang.

Oh, right.

He picked up the receiver. "Hello?"

"Daniel?"

"Jack? Where are you?" He looked at the clock. "What are you doing calling this late?"

"I'm at home. And it's not _that _late, fer cryin' out loud. Anyway, I'm calling because…I think I know where Sam is."

That got Daniel's attention, and he bolted up to a sitting position. "What? How? Where is she? Is she alright?"

"Slow down Danny-boy. I called her brother Mark—"

"Her half-brother right? The one who sent the owl…thing."

"Yes and no. He said Sam has another half-brother. He thinks she might have gone to him."

"Another brother? Why didn't she tell us? Where does he live?"

"Apparently so, I have no idea, and…London."

* * *

Sam groaned as she opened her eyes. Oh, she had **not** gotten enough sleep last night. There were too many thoughts running around, demanding her attention.

She buried her head in a hand, trying to think. She missed her team; a quiet ache that was nevertheless solid, demanding. It was odd, and a little shocking to realize that she had never gone more than two days without talking to at least one of them since they had been a team at all, and it was over a week now since she had left the United States. She missed Jack, too—missed his jokes, his easy grins, his warm, beautiful eyes, the accidental brushes of hands or clothes that they shared and that kept her up at night. Pathetic, but true. She was staying, though. She had decided, and wouldn't go back on her word; and they were doing fine without her, she was sure. It wasn't their problem if she missed them so badly that it left an ache in her chest.

The job. Sam groaned out loud at the thought. If she was honest with herself, really honest, she would admit that she wanted to take it—wanted it desperately. But there were so many doubts. She had never even been to Hogwarts! Not to mention the little fact of why she hadn't gone in the first place…and now they wanted her to go teach there. She was qualified enough, she didn't doubt that, but…could she even teach? She'd certainly never tried it…

She raised her head as a little voice floated through her head that sounded eerily like her commanding officer, and she almost laughed. Now she was hearing things…in voices no less. _Relax, Carter_ the voice told her in Ja—the colonel's easy drawl. _You can handle it._

But…I've never even been to the school…I've never even taught a class…I'm a— 

_Do you want to?_ The question was direct, and Sam was forced to nod.

_Then do it! Jeez, Carter, give yourself a little credit. _The voice grew warmer. _You can do it. I believe in you._

That was enough to make Sam groan. Now the voices were getting minds of their own…yeah, she really hadn't gotten enough sleep last night. Jack—the colonel—oh, Jack, it was just in her mind—or her own subconscious, had a point, too. She wanted to. And everyone else apparently thought she could…

"I'll do it," she said out loud. "I'll take the job."

"Wonderful! I'll tell Minerva the minute I see her!" Sam looked around frantically and saw Remus sitting in the corner in a chair.

"What the—! How long have you been there? Scratch that. Why the _hell_ are you there!" She glared furiously, not happy that someone—her annoying younger brother no less—had heard her talking aloud. To herself. _Not_ good.

Remus's grin widened. "Embarrassed are we?" he teased, right before the candle that had been on Sam's nightstand seconds before ended up hitting him in the stomach. "Ouch! Sam that hurt!" He paused, and then said quietly, "Good aim though…"

Sam glared before stating simply, "I missed." When she saw her brother's face pale slightly, she laughed and released the tension. As she shooed her brother out so she could get dressed, she heard him mutter, "Don't mess with Wax-Woman."

* * *

Sirius was walking down the hall toward his room. It was just after breakfast, and he had a couple letters he needed to write before the end of the week. As he passed one of the extra rooms, he felt himself being dragged inward by someone with a rather strong grip.

As he turned to face his 'assailant' he only saw Sam's mischievous smile, and he grinned. "Do I even want to know?" She didn't say anything, but he saw that the mischief behind her smile was now reflected in her eyes, making them twinkle. He shook his head. "What deed do you need help with now?"

Her smile didn't waver. "I don't know _what_ you're talking about. I only have a question."

He raised an eyebrow. "And you had to drag me into an empty room to do so?" His eyes suddenly reflected the same look hers had. "Samantha…" he started suggestively.

She lightly socked his arm. "I'm afraid to tell you I'm immune to your 'charm'."

"Then what, pray tell, is all this for?"

She did her best to look innocent, and didn't seem that bothered by the fact that it failed miserably. "I was just wondering if you would show me around the city."

* * *

Well, another chapter done! Again, a hundred thanks to the people who reviewed. No one's guessed Why Sam Left, but…cookies anyway! Because FC is a kind and benevolent person.

Ora: #snort# Kind and benevolent?

FC: Yes, _kind and benevolent_. Is there a problem with that?

Ora: #dissolves into laughter#

FC: Meanie…anyway, look down. See the button. Feel the button calling your name…entreating you to review…your hand moves to the mouse…And, reviewers get cookies!

Tune in next time for the Great Escape from the House of Black, planes, automobiles, and…that's it… on the next episode of, The Science of Magic!


	4. Chapter 4

**The Science of Magic**

**A/N:** I would like to clear up some confusion in the last chapter: This **not** a Sam/Sirius fic. It's _completely_ and _totally_ Sam/Jack. That comment Sirius made in the last chapter was just him being a smart ass. Sam sees Sirius _only _as a brother figure. Comprende?

Well, enjoy!

* * *

Jack stood before General Hammond in a pose that brought back memories of being sent to the principal's office in elementary school. He was even fidgeting, hands clasped firmly behind his back. The general looked at him skeptically.

"Let me see if I understand you correctly, Colonel. You, Dr. Jackson, and Teal'c want to go to London. For as long as possible."

"Yes, sir."

Hammond sighed. "This wouldn't have anything to do with Major Carter, would it?"

Busted. "No, sir! Of course not."

The general didn't look all that convinced, and sighed again as he shuffled some of the papers on his desk. "Well, I will agree that SG-1 hasn't had a vacation in too long. Permission granted, Colonel. You and the others have a month off."

* * *

Daniel looked at Jack skeptically as he drove, leaning up from the back seat of the car. "So, Jack, your grand plan is to go to London and then…do what?"

"Find Sam," Jack replied curtly. "Track down this Remus guy first, if we have to."

"And you expect to do that…how?"

"I don't know, okay?" Jack snapped, eyes fixed on the road, and Daniel shut up, shaking his head and pulling out a book. This was going to be a **looong** trip.

* * *

"So, Sam…how are we getting out exactly?"

"Um…" _Well, Thor might be able to help. But somehow I don't think that that would be the best thing to do right now…_She stood there for a while, silently contemplating.

"Sam? Yoohoo! Sammie! What have ya got?"

An idea struck her. _Guess we're doing this the old fashioned way._ "Do you have a window near a drainpipe?"

"What? That old trick! There must be something that Mad-Eye did to the windows. Or the pipes!"

She smiled. "I don't think so. It's so simple, no one in their right minds would think of it!"

"If no one in their 'right mind' would do it, then why are we?"

"Because it's the only way out that doesn't involve any sort of magic; which means it'll be harder to track," she stated simply.

"Right…" He stopped for a second, recalling the layout of the house. "There is one, but it's rather high up."

She smiled. "Don't worry about me, I can manage."

Sirius grinned, happy to finally get out. "Well then, what are we waiting for?"

Laughing, the two walked upward. To anyone else, it looked like they were just strolling around the large house. A few minutes later, they came to a small window on the top floor.

Sirius bowed. "Ladies first." Sam smirked and climbed out the window. After making sure she had a firm grip on the drainpipe, she slowly eased herself down, trying not to make much noise. When her feet touched the ground and she motioned for him to come down, Sirius followed her example and carefully climbed downwards.

As he was getting down, Sam scanned the back alley they were on. Luckily, the window Sirius had chosen wasn't on the front of the house, so it would be a rather easy escape; if no one noticed their absence of course. The moment Sirius's feet hit the ground, Sam grabbed him and quietly whispered, "Which way?" When he pointed left, she motioned for him to follow, and the two made their way down the street, trying not to attract any attention.

* * *

"Um…Jack?"

He turned and glared at Daniel. "**What**, Daniel?"

The archaeologist winced a little. They had arrived at their hotel after a horribly long plane ride, dumped their things at the hotel, and were currently walking around London; and Jack hadn't gotten out of his bad mood the whole time, leaving Daniel to deal with the luggage, customs, and answering Teal'c's questions about the plane. And quite frankly, Daniel was sick of it.

"Look, Jack, this is ridiculous. You need to get it together. We need to just think about this rationally so that we can figure out a way to…find…Sam…Oh my God."

Jack was staring at the same thing Daniel, and in a moment Teal'c were…the blond woman in jeans and a black t-shirt coming out of one of the shops across the street. The woman who looked remarkably, amazingly, like Sam.

"Does this even happen?" Daniel asked rhetorically, but Jack didn't hear him. It was Sa—Carter—Sam. They had found her. He was so…relief was filling and tightening his chest. She was okay. He had been so worried about her…he hadn't even realized how much until he saw her safe, unharmed. And looking so, so beautiful. Her hair gleamed in the sun as she turned to say something, smiling with her whole face at someone behind her. Seeing her for the first time since he had fully realized how he felt was…strange. His sense of her seemed to be different, and even from across a crowded street he was hyper-aware of her movements, of how her hands moved expressively through the air, the tilt of her head as she looked at the window display and then turned around fully to smile at the man with long black hair standing behind her.

The man…he walked up to Sam, smiled, and Sam laughed—and Jack's breath seemed to still, and freeze in his chest, as she and the man embraced, her head resting on his shoulder. She…he…they…Damn. Damn, damn, damn.

He stared at them for another moment as they separated, grinned at each other, walked off. She never even saw them. And Jack turned abruptly, brushing past Daniel roughly and ignoring his friend's startled yelp and call of "Jack?" He felt a hundred times more betrayed than he had when she had left. She was with another guy. He had come here, worried out of his mind, and she was with another guy. Damn.

* * *

Sam was walking down the street with Sirius, who she fully expected to transform into his dog form any moment out of pure happiness from being outside, free, when she heard a cry that seemed to pull at her, spin her around to stare back down the street. Daniel. She had heard Daniel, she knew she had, and he had been calling out "Jack". Were they…here? They couldn't be here, but…she caught a glimpse of the back of a tall, large man wearing a beanie who parted the crowd and she gasped, and started down the street, ignoring Sirius's startled "Sam?" behind her. But then she lost sight of the man, and she could hear nothing but the normal bustle of a busy London street and Sirius's questions behind her. "Sam, are you okay? What's going on?"

She stayed staring down the street a moment, and then turned and smiled at him. "Nothing. I…thought I heard something. But I'm fine."

Sirius nodded, not entirely convinced, and they walked off together, and Sam ignored the little voice in the back of her head telling her to turn, and run after the voice she had heard until she found Jack and could throw herself into his arms.

* * *

Daniel followed Jack down the street with Teal'c beside him, both men trying to catch up with their friend before any of them got lost in the crowd. Daniel accidentally ran into a woman walking in the opposite direction and turned to apologize, but when he saw her face, his voice seemed to vanish. The woman standing there was…"Sam?" The woman in question raised her eyes up toward his face and he immediately realized his mistake; Sam had bright blue eyes, this woman's were a deep emerald. But the resemblance between them was astounding. While Sam was a little taller than the woman before him, they were almost identical. There were little differences, ones only a close friend or relative would see, but those differences were few.

She smiled awkwardly. "Um…sorry, I think you've got the wrong person." Her voice was definitely had a different tone than Sam's.

Daniel blushed. "Oh, sorry."

She smiled and turned around, heading down the street to the place where they had seen the real Samantha Carter. Or on second thought, maybe they hadn't.

* * *

Tonks hurried away from the stranger with the glasses, not comfortable with what had happened. Maybe looking so much like Sam at the moment wasn't a good thing; not that anyone had noticed, except that man. She wondered who he was for a short moment before seeing a flash of short blond hair in the café ahead. As she got closer, she saw the two sitting a table, drinking coffee and laughing. She snorted. Laughing. They were _laughing_. Did those two _know_ how much trouble they caused? How much panic? Mad-Eye had practically torn the house apart, looking for a way that someone could have gotten in and kidnapped them. When they had found the open window and two sets of prints at the bottom, they had all given a small sigh of relief that they had gone of their own free will. The little breath hadn't lasted long, though. Then they had to go and _find_ them! What fun! So, here she was, fuming, and ready to give each of them a good lecture about giving the Order a series of heart attacks.

As she walked toward them she saw Minerva a few paces away, having apparently also spotted them. The two women met up and stormed over to the pests. The laughing pair had their backs faced toward the rapidly approaching figures. When they felt the agitation behind them, they turned simultaneously, each with an apprehensive look on their face.

Minerva pursed her lips. "Samantha, Sirius, how nice to see you."

* * *

Jack had been sitting in the same position—on the hotel bed, head down in his hands—for almost two hours. Daniel had timed. He just…he couldn't believe it. In the past week and a half Sam—it was Sam now, he wasn't sure if he could call her Carter if he tried, although it would be nice to put at least that small bit of distance between them—Sam had disappeared, he had realized that he loved her, had loved her since he met her, would, barring any unimaginable, unforeseen event, love her until he died, he had frantically rushed to find her again…and he had seen her with another guy. **Hugging **another guy. He had exhausted himself, physically emotionally, to find her, make sure she was all right, and he had been faced with this. It was so…it was such a blow. It felt like such a betrayal, and even though his rational mind was telling him that there was no reason why Sam shouldn't be dating someone else, she didn't love him, she didn't know he loved her, heck, even if they both loved each other and had admitted it nothing would be able to happen between them; it still hurt. Still **unbelievably** hurt.

That was another thing, too—the regs. He hadn't thought of them when he realized how he felt, hadn't thought about them during his headlong flight here—in fact, his brain hadn't gotten much further than finding Sam and, in his fantasies at least, telling her how he felt, watching her eyes light up like they did and almost hearing her tender smile as she whispered, _"I love you too, Jack..."_ But they were there, and seeing her with that bastar—guy had forcefully reminded him of them. Nothing could happen. They were completely, royally stuck, and just as screwed. He couldn't love her—not a matter of shouldn't, which he could heartily concur with—after all, what would she, an amazing, beautiful, brilliant woman, want with an old guy like him?—but couldn't. **Couldn't**. So that was the outcome of his fabulously planned London trip, then—Sam was dating someone else, and he was left in the dust. Great. Just freakin' terrific.

* * *

And so ends chapter 4. Will Jack get over Sam? Will Sam find Jack? Will Tonks start thinking about the blue-eyed stranger she ran into—

FC: Enough! #shakes head# Gods, strike me down now!

Ora: #grins evilly# Just a second…I've got Hades on speed dial… #pulls out cell phone#

Niexi (Ora's muse): #rolls eyes# Thank you to everyone who reviewed! It makes them happy.

FC: #stage whisper# And made Ora forget about the phone call…

Ora: So, #pulls out pocket watch and starts to swing it# You are getting sleeepy…When I count to three, you will obey my every command…one…two…three…Now, you see the button in the lower left hand corner of the screen? Click on it.


	5. Chapter 5

**The Science of Magic**

And here we are with chapter 5. It took later than usual to post this, because **some**one…

Firecat925: Read: Oralindie….

Took ages to start the chapter. But. It's here now. Enjoy!

Oh, and…40 REVIEWS! Wow. Just…wow. Thanks so much, everyone!

* * *

Sam didn't move a muscle. Her body was stiff and unmoving, her face emotionless. But she was almost over the edge, a breath from her breaking point…

Lupin reapplied the tickle charm and she felt her control slip away. She tried desperately to stop laughing, but it was like trying to hold back a flood—it just wasn't going to happen.

Her brother, satisfied with her reaction, questioned her once more. "Will you ever do that again?" Somehow, Sam managed to calm her laughter, and as soon as he finished the question, she haughtily stuck her chin out. Recognizing her defiance, Lupin glared and turned on his heel, walking toward the figure charmed to a chair at the other end of the room.

She watched as he used the same charm on the man that he had used on her. After ten minutes with no results, Lupin swore. "Dammit, Sirius!"

Sirius grinned. "You forget, old friend, I'm not ticklish."

* * *

Lupin stormed out of the room, slamming the door to the makeshift cell behind him. Minerva looked up from her discussion with Molly and Tonks. "I assume it did not go well."

He literally growled before taking a deep breath and suddenly becoming the calm, collected professor almost as quickly as Tonks changed hair colors. He still sat down with some relief, though, and sipped a cup of tea he summoned from thin air with something approaching reverence. After a long moment, he shook his head. "Not exactly. I'm sure they understand how dangerous that stunt was, but—"

"They aren't acting like it?" Tonks asked drolly from her armchair, violet eyes glinting amusedly, and Lupin shook his head. "Sam's not usually like this, but…I think she's extremely happy to be here." He took another long sip of his tea. "I'm happy she's here too."

"You two're really close, aren't you?" Tonks asked curiously, unconsciously leaning forward in her chair. It was rare, very rare, for Lupin to talk about himself and his family, and she was eager for any chance she could get.

Remus smiled into his teacup. "We grew up together, played all the time, even after…" his smile dimmed slightly, returned as he reminisced. "We took classes at a muggle school for awhile, and she was always wonderful at math, science…she was a brat about it too."

Tonks grinned, both at his words and at his faint, and faintly amused, smile. She had to say, although she loved learning more, learning anything, about him, simply watching and hearing him talk was a pleasure in itself. A hank of brown, gray-streaked hair had the habit of flopping down on his faintly lined forehead, and when he smiled, like now, little spider-web cracks spread at the corners of his hazel eyes, which lit up with sparking flecks of gold. She loved his eyes, how they could be calm and quiet, then alight with wicked amusement, and just as quickly narrow in anger and protectiveness; loved them almost as much as his hands, which were slender and nimble with clever, strong fingers that were never quite still. And his voice; it was surprisingly rich for such a slight man, and it could sound dry or patient or soft or raised in anger, all within the space of a breath. She could imagine him saying her name sometimes, rolling over the 't' and 'o' and lifting off the 'k' and 's' with a slight lilt…kind of like she could hear it now, actually….

"Tonks? Are you alright?" Wait…that wasn't in her head…

Oh, bloody hell.

She lifted from her daze and realized that when she had been staring off into space, she had been staring at _him!_ Shaking her head a little to clear it, she nodded, knowing everyone was watching her. "Yeah, sorry. Um…just a little tired…." She silently prayed that they would buy it.

Molly was the first to respond. "Of course, dear. After that chase around the city, who wouldn't be?" In her head Tonks jumped for joy, glad no one knew the real reason she had spaced out, and stared at Lupin while doing so. Deciding that she had better go to her room, she stood up and stepped into the hall, hurrying away from the room that contained the man she loved.

* * *

Jack sat in silence, wanting every noise around him to stop—just stop, and let him be depressed in peace. Unfortunately, the kid in the seat in front of them seemed bound and determined to make his life miserable. And it wasn't just the kid in front of him—every person on this God damned eleven hour flight was hellishly bent on turning this into the worst plane flight ever—even if he hadn't just gotten back from seeing the woman he loved and was legally prevented from every being with embracing another guy.

"Are you okay, Jack?" Daniel was still worried about him, obviously—not that Jack really blamed the guy, since they were currently heading back to the states after five days less than the planned vacation, and Jack had barely left the hotel during the day they scrambled to get tickets for the flight back home.

"Yeah, I'm fine." A lie. He wasn't. It hurt, hurt badly, and he didn't see it going away any time soon—but he was fine to go back to work. He could deal with it, and he was going to get through it. So… "I'm perfectly fine."

* * *

"Morning, Tonks," Sam said cheerily the next day, walking into the kitchen and smiling at the younger woman, currently with hair that was short and green, who was sipping coffee and reading the Daily Prophet. Tanks looked up, looking distinctly less thrilled. "Yes, it is."

Sam walked over to the counter, pouring a mug of coffee for her own. "Are you okay?"

Tonks looked up with a start, then looked back down at her paper, although not before she knocked her own mug off the table, spilling coffee all over the floor and shattering ceramic. "Damn!" Sam winced and knelt to help Tonks clean it up, giving the younger woman a searching look. "You look tired."

"I didn't get much sleep last night," Tonks said, shrugging indifferently and charming the rest of the mug into the trash bin—or tried, at least, and dropped the mass onto the floor and into even smaller pieces when Remus walked into the room as well. "Morning Sam, Tonks," he said politely, and she snapped "Yes, it is" for the second time in five minutes.

Surprised by Tonks's mood, Lupin gave Sam a look that asked 'Do I really want to know?' When she shook her head ever so slightly, so that the other woman didn't notice, he raised his eyebrows and walked to the other side of the kitchen, deciding to heed Sam's silent warning.

He opened the icebox to look for something to eat. Not finding anything, he moved to the cupboards, determined not to go hungry. As he was poking his head into one of the bottom cabinets, he decided that the silence was getting unnerving. "So, Sam…what'd you do yesterday?"

The major smiled, glad to have something else to occupy her mind than the obvious brooding of the other woman sitting at the table. She took a sip of coffee, and leaned back against the counter before answering. "Not much; just getting a breath of fresh, un-possessive air." She grinned behind her mug when she saw her brother frown at the word 'possessive'. "We did some sight seeing, got lunch, shopped a little—" Remus snorted. _Right, 'a little'._ Sam, ignoring her brothers 'comment', and continued. "Then we got caught and…" her voice drifted off as a faint memory came to her.

Right before they had reached the café. She had heard something; no, _someone. _Jack. No, not Jack; Daniel, it had been Daniel she had heard, calling to Jack. She was sure of it. Her heart fluttered a little at the thought of him here. God, she wished that he was. This whole situation would feel tremendously less complicated if he was here. Dammit! Why hadn't she told them anything? What was wrong with her! She hadn't thought of any of them when she had left. She had been selfish, only thinking of herself and her needs. Her need to see family again; to see her brother.

One of the little voices she occasionally heard started to talk, whispering comforts. _You're not being selfish! You had every right in the galaxy to come here. He'll understand, don't worry…_

"Sam?" She jerked her head up, looking at her brother through clouded eyes. However, when she noticed her brother's face contained an overt sparkle of mischief, it was like she had been splashed with a bucket of cold water. She straightened quickly as Remus began to speak. "Sam's thinking again. Tonks, you might want to leave the building, this could get dangerous." Tonks smiled a little, but when Sam gave him a flat looked that obviously stated _not funny_, his eyes seemed to blaze."Oh, distracted are we? Could it have something to do with a certain col—" he was cut off when the hot liquid that had previously been in Sam's cup landed on him.

The sister in question mocked shock. "Oh, Remus! Are you okay? Sorry about that, but you know how clumsy I am."

Glaring death, Lupin muttered under his breath, "And Voldemort's favorite holiday is Valentine's Day."

Sam wasn't the only one who snorted this time as Remus cast a spell to rid himself of the offending caffeine drink. Shortly after that he found a packet of biscuits and walked over to the table, getting a mug of tea and sitting down. When he smelled the remains of Tonks' cup, he shook his head. "I'm not sure how you can bring yourself to drink that stuff," he commented mildly, and she scowled at him halfheartedly. "It wakes me up in the morning," she replied. "Some of us can't function on four hours of sleep."

"I only did that once…" he muttered, looking sulky, and Tonks desperately tried to hide a giggle as Sam began to look at them with more interest. Were they…Remus was back to his professor mode that she was beginning to learn was normal for him, but now that she really paid attention… Tonks glanced at him from the corner of her eye, looked away just as quickly.

Tonks had a crush on her little brother? Well…dang. He was twelve years older than her! Not she could cite age difference as an excuse against liking someone, Sam thought with a small blush.

Sam poured herself another cup of coffee and sat down at the table, grabbing one of the chocolate-covered McVities before questioning her brother. "Four hours? Gee, wonder which side of the family that must come from." Remus grinned, knowing exactly what Sam's sleeping habits tended to be, even when she didn't have work to do.

Tonks, who wasn't aware of that side of Sam yet, decided that she really didn't want to know what they were talking about. So she pushed the chair back and stood up. "I've got a couple things I need to do. See you guys later."

Remus and Sam watched as she walked out, neither quite knowing what was bugging the young witch.

* * *

Jack sat on his roof, leaning against the back of the plastic lawn char. Next to the chair was a six-pack, with all but one of the bottles empty. He wasn't doing anything in particular, just sitting. Trying not to think. And most _definitely_ not thinking about _her_. The way she had draped herself over him, smiling widely as she looked into his eyes. They way he had looked back.

One of the various voices was shouting at him, trying to tell him something. Maybe it was important, maybe not. He shrugged, not caring. The voice he was successfully ignoring was shouting: _Dammit, Jack! That is **not** how it happened! Quit adding onto it! Jack! Listen to me. Jack!_

"**Jack!**"

Wait, that voice wasn't inside his head…unless Daniel had somehow got himself added tot he other voices in there, and Jack sincerely hoped not. "What, Daniel?"

The archaeologist sighed and finished climbing up onto the roof himself, leaning a little on the railing. "How are you doing?"

"Fine. Never better."

In Jack-speak, 'Crappy but it's none of your damn business, so bugger off.'

"Look, Jack…"

The older man glared at him before downing the rest of his beer. "I said I'm fine."

Well, wasn't this fun. "Look, Jack, you're not going to get anywhere if you just stay up here and mope because Sam might…**might**…be dating someone else."

"Might—Daniel, she was **hugging** the guy!"

Ok, this was just ridiculous. "For god's sake, Jack, she hugs me! She hugs Teal'c! Hugging someone does not mean you're in love with them!"

The voice Jack was desperate to ignore was currently jumping up and down shouting, _Yes! **Yes!**_ Jack pushed the voice away again and whispered silently, "Sometimes it does…"

Daniel continued, unaware of either the voice or Jack's comment, "What if that was her brother, Jack? Did you ever think of that?"

For a second Jack heard the voice saying, _Listen to the man, Jack! He's rig—_But the voice was cut off by another, more sadistic one. _No, Jack. It wasn't a brother. You don't look at a brother like that. It was her boyfriend, and you know it._

Jack, giving into the second voice, shook his head. "No, Daniel, it wasn't her brother. You know that, I know that."

"Jack—"

He cut him short. "Daniel, don't. Just—don't." He heard Daniel sigh. "Fine. I'm going back to the base in the morning, Jack. Are you coming?" Daniel barely heard the "Yeah," that followed. "Okay, I'll pick you up. 'Night Jack."

Jack didn't reply. He just sat there; staring up at the stars as he listened to Daniel's fading footsteps. God, how he wished he was out there…somewhere. Anywhere but here.

* * *

And there you have it…chapter five. And, for everyone that's worried…this is most definitely a Sam/Jack fic, with some Tonks/Lupin. In fact, there are some decidedly fluffy bits in the near(ish) future because FC is incapable of writing her fics in order. However, there does need to be a bit of angst to get to the happy fluff, so hang in there! We promise happy endings.

Oh, and several people have guessed Why Sam Left the Wizarding World! Congrats! However, we won't be announcing the names just yet, because we wouldn't want to give it away, would we? But cookies are coming!

Next time on…The Science of Magic! Hogwarts, Umbridge, and Teacher!Sam

See the pretty, shiny review button? That's right…it calls to you…beckoning you to click on it…echoes of bribes including cookies reach your ears…


	6. AU JackseesSam

**The Science of Magic**

Firecat925: Ladies and Gentlemen of the jury…

#is whapped over the head with a notebook# Ow…

Oralindie: Sorry about her. Mock trial tends to get to her after a few of the competitions… Anyway, no, this is not the long awaited sixth chapter. #ducks fruit and cannonballs sent by angry readers# Wait, wait!

Firecat925: What Ora means to say is, a certain someone--who is not me--didn't write more for AGES. However, because you are all REALLY FREAKIN' AWESOME and we have 50 reviews, this is a little Jack/Sam 'AU', as it were. What could have happened if we didn't mind the story only being about four chapters long. 75 reviews and we might think of extending it… #hint hint#

Oralindie: Really, thank you so, so much for the reviews. You don't know how happy that makes us.

Firecat925: And, without further ado… The AU of that evil little bit of chapter 4!

* * *

"Look, Jack, this is ridiculous. You need to get it together. We need to just think about this rationally so that we can figure out a way to…find…Sam…Oh my God." 

Jack was staring at the same thing Daniel, and in a moment Teal'c, was…the blond woman in jeans and a black t-shirt coming out of one of the shops across the street. The woman who looked remarkably, amazingly, like Sam.

"Does this even happen?" Daniel asked rhetorically, but Jack didn't hear him. It was Sa—Carter—Sam. They had found her. He was so…relief was filling and tightening his chest. She was okay. He had been so worried about her…he hadn't even realized how much until he saw her safe, unharmed. And looking so, so beautiful. Her hair gleamed in the sun as she turned to say something, smiling with her whole face at someone behind her. Seeing her for the first time since he had fully realized how he felt was…strange. His sense of her seemed to be different, and even from across a crowded street he was hyper-aware of her movements, of how her hands moved expressively through the air, the tilt of her head as she looked at the window display and then turned around fully to smile at the man with long black hair standing behind her. Jack didn't even notice though, as he was currently blithely defying all traffic laws, dodging a car and waving off the angry honk of its horn as he crossed the street. Daniel was yelling something behind him, but he didn't pay attention. Later he could think about Daniel, later he could think about the guy behind her, later he could marvel at how stupid it was to cross a busy street to get to the other side. Now…there was Sam.

She was looking his way now, mouth dropping open and eyes wide and looking unbearably cute, and when he finally stood before her it was much more awkward than he had imagined. "Uh…hi," he offered lamely, and she blinked for a moment. "Um…hi…sir?"

And with that tentative 'sir' Jack remembered everything he wanted to say to her, and he swept her up and planted his lips on hers with trepidation and a hastily uttered prayer, and then her hands moved to the back of his head and one of his hands held her waist as the other pressed her head closer and tangled his fingers in her hair, and all he could feel and hear and taste and smell was her. He was wrapped up in her, drowning in her, in his and her whole little world where it was just them, hands clutching at each other and skin brushing skin with searing heat.

Daniel gaped when he and Teal'c finally made it to the other side of the street, using the somewhat safer method of the crosswalk, coming to a halt and blinking speechlessly at the sight of Jack and Sam, **Jack** and **Sam**, making out in the middle of the sidewalk. The black-haired man who had been with Sam was gaping too, and the three shared a moment of stunned silence before the two parted, breathing heavily and positively glowing. Sam smiled at Jack through half lidded eyes, just now truly understanding that his hands were there and hers there, and her smile changed to a grin. "It's good to see you, Jack."

* * *

You like? Remember, 75 reviews! Chapter 6 will be here soon! 


	7. Chapter 6

**The Science of Magic**

#sigh# Sorry this took so long, minna. We have this little problem sometimes. It's called Life. Or school; either/or. Anywho, despite the big delay, chapter six is finally here! Oh, and one more thing. We got a couple reviews saying how 'sappy' and 'completely unrealistic' the last chapter was. Well, duh! That's why it was AU, and not part of the story line! It wasn't supposed to be realistic! It's called fun, people! You know, writing something that you know will never happen, but is fun to think about happening.

Note: We're skipping the trial/etc. because it would take too much time and we want the school year to start. So, this is about 2-2 1/2 weeks before September 1st…or the middle of August, if you want to be picky about it P And yes, with just a smidgeon of creative time manipulation this actually works.

* * *

"Professor Carter?" The title, so unfamiliar but now hers, snapped Sam out of her reverie as she looked at the older woman. "Yes, Professor McGonagall?"

McGonagall smiled a very little as she looked at the new Arithmancy teacher, who was currently standing just outside Hogwarts' gate. "Are you coming?"

Sam nodded, and stepped inside the gates. It was a surprisingly anticlimactic movement for something so important to her, for such a culmination of her dreams for eleven solid years of her life. Hogwarts had been so much for her—her goal, her ideal. She wanted to learn, to go to school, to become a real witch and grow up to be famous. Later—when she turned nine, actually—her dream had solidified, narrowed. She was going to go to Hogwarts, get top in all her classes, and find a cure for lycanthropy. She was going to protect her little brother and find out how to cure him. And then…then she had found out that her dream was not only hard to accomplish, not only almost impossible, but she simply couldn't do it. Nothing on earth could make her able to do anything she had dreamed about. Whatever happened to her little brother, he wasn't going to be saved by her. But then she had found science, found that she could do things after all, wasn't useless…could save lives, create something from seemingly nothing. But…now, her childhood ambitions were all coming back. She was finally at Hogwarts.

She shook her head a little and kept walking, only to stop short a moment later as the Transfiguration professor halted right before the lake. A small boat waited by the shore, rocking a little in the waves lapping against the grass. "I know this is your first time here," the professor said, the very faintest traces of a smile on her wrinkled, stern face, "so we took the liberty of arranging a boat for you." Sam swallowed hard and nodded, stepping forward and into the thing carefully, gripping the side a little to maintain her balance. "It's much more dramatic at night," McGonagall added as the boat began to self-propel forward, "but the view is still beautiful at this time."

Sam only had time to nod again before the boat moved fully away, and for a moment all her attention was focused on figuring out how it moved, finding how it self-propelled itself across the smooth water, before the part of her brain that was still eleven reminded her that it didn't work like that. There was none of the logic she had used since she began to learn science here, no way to reason out what worked or why. It just…was. All the thoughts flew out of her head, though, at the sight of the castle looming on the bluff above her. It was stark and grey, a mighty, sculpted mass of stone against a sky so black it was almost painful, towers softening the edges and the lights of the castle glistening and reflecting off the water. It was…incredible. She had never seen it before; imagined what it looked like, sure, but nothing that could get even close to the reality.

The boat nudged against the opposite shore and Sam climbed out, looking at the stone that was now in front of her with awe. She stood on the rocky dock, waiting for Professor McGonagall. As soon as the older woman was out they were off again, heading up a long, torch lit flight of stairs. A while later Sam emerged into the open air, night and all of its surrealism surrounding her. She noted the large tree that hid the passageway Remus had told her about, and the cliff not twenty yards to her right. The castle itself was to her left, about a hundred and fifty yards in the distance, a commanding monolith against the night.

She heard the Professor surface behind her, and followed when McGonagall continued walking toward the school. The major looked up in wonder. The castle was enormous! The feeling that she got when looking up at it was almost like the feeling she got when she was looking up at Earth from orbit. Sam also felt small as the two women made their way up the front steps to the main door. Inside the Entrance Hall, McGonagall stopped and turned to Sam, and spoke in a clear, but unusually disappointed voice, "Your things are in your room, but I'm sorry to say that I cannot go with you. One of our house elves, Dobby, will lead you to them, and show you to the Great Hall in the morning for breakfast." With that, Minerva smiled and walked down one of the corridors, leaving Sam alone.

She was just about to start looking around for this 'Dobby', but nearly jumped out of her skin when a voice behind her replied, "This ways, miss." She turned around quickly, hand going automatically to her waist, only to see the short and squat little creature peer up with large eyes. _Damn, he's luck I didn't have my gun_. The elf—Dobby—walked toward her, but didn't stop when he reached her feet. Instead, he continued, down the corridor Minerva had gone down. Sam followed, eyeing the creature's…odd choice of clothing, but then she started to watch the walls around her instead, memorizing the way. The snoring paintings brought a smile to Sam's face as she remembered when her mother had once spelled a picture she had drawn as a child. She still had it too; her mother had sent it with her when Sam had left for America. It was packed up in her attic, out of sight and safe from peering eyes, but still there—one of her only physical reminders of her magical heritage.

Shaking her head a little to bring herself back to reality, Sam continued to follow Dobby down twisting, winding halls until he stopped. The painting he was standing in front of pictured a witch slumped against a low tower wall, with a telescope to her right, and starry sky behind. How appropriate. Dobby whispered softly, "Excuses me!"

The witch didn't so much as twitch. Dobby scowled and raised his voice, glaring at the painting in a way that was comic for a creature only three or so feet tall. At this second try the witch jerked up, blinking sleep from her eyes and peering blearily at Sam and Dobby.

"'eh?"

"This is your quarters!" Dobby said, shooting the witch another glare and bowing at the same time, the three or so hats stacked on his head tottering precariously; and Sam held back a giggle, instead thanking Dobby politely as he turned and disappeared with a crack that resounded through the air like a gunshot and made Sam jump. Sam then turned to the painting, which was surveying her speculatively. "You're the new Arithmancy teacher, are you?"

Sam nodded, and for good measure, added a "My name's Samantha Carter. It's a pleasure to meet you."

The witch smiled. "Tabitha deWarter, astronomy and Arithmancy. Welcome to your new abode, Samantha." Her painting begun to swing open, before she paused. "It would be advisable to set a password, if I may suggest—several of the students are here are quite the ruffian."

Her nose wrinkled as she spoke, and Sam bit back a grin. It was a good idea, though. A password…hm…a thought, a wild thought came to her, and she almost discarded it on hand, both for the regulations it broke and the distinct junior-high tone it had to it. But…she was freer, here. Why not? "I want the password to be Jack O'Neill, please," she told Tabitha, who raised an eyebrow and nodded. "Very well. Please enter, Samantha Carter."

Sam stepped into the doorway the swinging painting revealed, making a mental note to tell Ms. DeWarter to call her Sam…but her thoughts vanished as she caught a look of what was to be her new home. The painting opened onto what looked like a study or living room. There was a crackling fire on one wall and a sofa that looked ridiculously comfortable and a low bookshelf alongside another, and much of the floor was covered in thick carpeting. There was a desk along the third wall that faced a window that looked out on the forest, and the place was decorated in colors that were soft and warm and inviting—the way Sam had always wanted her house to be like, before she resigned herself to never having the time to decorate like that. There were two doorways, with doors out of a richly hued wood Sam didn't recognize—upon further exploration, one proved to be a luxurious bathroom that she couldn't wait to try out, and the other was a bedroom, the bed wide and hung with a curtain, and her clothes hanging or folded neatly in a wardrobe.

Sam sat down on the bed heavily, running her hand along the soft bedcover; and suddenly felt incredibly lonely, and wrapped her arms around herself fiercely as she willed herself with all her might to imagine the arms as strong, and a warm body behind hers with a chin tucked on top of her head, and a low, soothing voice reverberating through her body. But it didn't come—it was just her, alone here, and she flopped back onto the bed and stared unseeingly at the curtained ceiling.

Thoughts rushed through her brain, but they were all centered on him. The way he laughed; the way he talked; that cute grin that was always plastered to his face whenever she tripped, knocked something over, or was at a loss for words. The way he was always there for her, and listened to what she had to say, whether he understood or not. And before she realized it, she was asleep, his loving smile the last clear picture in her mind.

* * *

Sam woke up with a start, and, not recognizing where she was, her hand subconsciously reached for the gun under her pillow. As soon as her warm hand hit the cold metal, it froze and her mind cleared. She was fine; she hadn't been kidnapped. Retracting her hand, she sat up and pushed the hair out of her eyes. Looking at her watch, she realized that it was 0530 hours; time to get up anyway. As soon as she put her foot on the ground, she realized that she had fallen asleep in her clothes, shoes and all. Sighing, she slipped her boots off her feet and slowly walked out of the bedroom and into the main room, and over to the window, her stocking feet silent on the plush cream carpet. It was still dark outside, but she could make out the dark outline of the forest; the Forbidden Forest, she would guess, judging from what Remus had told her; foreboding against the openness of the grounds before it. Sam sighed and leaned against the window pane, eyes darting longingly up to the stars. As their reflections twinkled in her blue eyes, she silently wished to be back among them. She loved it here, she really did, being able to see her brother again, and some of her friends, being back among the magic she had lost; but she desperately dreamed of being in space. Of being millions of light years from Earth.

Reluctantly, she broke her gaze. She had a job to do, one that she knew she would be great, but that didn't mean that some part of her didn't regret coming. Ah, well. She was used to missing things, people, and this was her home. This was where she belonged. And, if she told herself that enough, soon she would even begin to believe it.

It didn't take long for her to get dressed and showered, possibly due to her avoidance of the robes for now. She honestly wanted to take longer, to linger in the bath and just relax, but she just couldn't manage it—too many years of the military and having to be ready to go at a moment's notice. She was still yawning as she walked out into the hallway.

"Good morning, Samantha." For the second time this morning her hand reached for her gun, only to still when she saw that it was just the painting. This was going to take ten years off her life if it kept up.

"Good morning." Then, remembering her mental note from the night before, "And it's just Sam, please." The witch sniffed, perhaps in disapproval, but nodded.

Sam's stomach rumbled, and she was reminded of another important part of the morning—breakfast. It was all well and good to forget to eat back at home, when there was always something else she could be doing that was more important, but here… "Where would I go to get breakfast?" Tabitha raised an eyebrow, but jerked her head down the hall to the right. "It's in that direction. Three left turns, down the second stairway to the right, through the door that I believe is currently disguised as a rather offensive painting of Urbert the Unfortunate, and…" she cocked her head, "Two right turns again." Sam was taken aback for a moment, but nodded her thanks and took off.

She started out at a slow walk—yes, she was hungry, but she wanted to enjoy the castle around her more—but after the first two turns, which were reasonably close together, it seemed that the corridor would never end. The tapestry and painting lined walls went on and on, with no end in sight. So, when Sam heard her stomach growl again, she started to jog.

At last the evasive doorway came into view, and Sam speed up just a little as she started to go around the corner, only to run into someone. Sam took a step back to regain her balance, and looked up to apologize to the person, only to see none other than Severus Snape. Oops.

"Oh, sorry, sir; I didn't see you."

His tone as he responded was flat, and seemed as well practiced as all the other times he spoke. "Obviously."

Smiling awkwardly and raising her eyebrows like she did when she was embarrassed, Sam stood there for a second. "Um…well, I've got to get going. So, see you later." She hurried down the hall. _Damn, why does he have to be so creepy?_

Luckily for her (and her stomach), the room that Tabitha had given her directions to was in sight. Reaching it, she glanced at the sign on the door reading 'Teachers Lounge, Staff Only' before pushing it open and walking in.

Looking around she saw some tables and chairs, a couple of comfy looking sofas, an old wardrobe, and a fireplace. Currently, it was empty, giving the woman some privacy. As she turned to her right, she saw a plain wooden door. Curious, Sam walked over and pulled it open, only to have her senses bombarded with the wonderful smell of bacon cooking. Sticking her head in, she found herself staring into a small kitchen. At the stove, she saw the back of the person responsible for the ambush on her senses. The person, having heard the door open, turned and Sam found her staring into the eyes of an older woman with short, gray hair and strangely golden eyes. The woman smiled at Sam.

"You must be the new teacher. I'm Madam Hooch, the Quidditch coach." Sam smiled at her. "I'm Samantha Carter. You can call me Sam." Madam Hooch nodded, features that seemed normally stern crinkling into a smile. "Well, I'm sure that you've been told this already, but welcome to Hogwarts."

* * *

The late afternoon found Sam standing at the edge of the lake, quietly admiring the splash of brilliant crimson and wine on the dark water. It was so incredible here. She could barely believe it—it was like some of the other worlds she had visited through the Stargate, full of wonder. She could see why this was still Remus's favorite place, almost like his home—she couldn't imagine spending the greater part of her growing up here.

She hadn't done much more than just wander today, roaming the halls and silently marveling at the paintings and doors and the view from the windows; skirting the Whomping Willow cautiously with a mind to what Remus had told her about what it did, venturing into the outskirts of the Forbidden forest. She was mapping the area in her head in a habit born of years of defending unknown territory, silently noting what corridors led where, the pattern of trees in the forest and what was wise to avoid. And now, here she was, watching the sun set in a landscape that managed to be both familiar and completely alien. It was…so incredible. So, so incredible, and there was nothing she should be regretting about his. Nothing she should be regretting about being here, surrounded by everything she had used to want to be surrounded by, doing everything she had used to want to do…being where, once, her only dream had been to step foot in.

But…she did. She did regret it. She missed her lab, missed working out alien artifacts, missed Teal'c's silent support and Daniel's kindness and enthusiasm and Jack's…well, his everything. But…there was no use in this. One thing the air force had taught her was to put things that she didn't need to be thinking about behind her. If it was going to obstruct her performance, going to cause problems, and it wasn't necessary to think about, she shouldn't.

"Are you all right, Professor Carter?" She turned quickly, and met the gaze of Minerva McGonagall. Was she? Was she going to be? Could she? "Yes," she said, jaw tightening just the smallest bit, and giving a firm nod. "Yes, Professor. I really think I am."

* * *

FC: #in a dramatic voice# Is she really alright? Is she going to be alright? Can she be alright? Review and find out!

Ora: Wasn't that exactly what you just wrote?

FC: #shrugs# Yeah, but it works so nicely.

Ora: #rolls eyes# Whatever. Anywho, thanks to anyone and everyone who reviewed! And here ya go! #tosses cookies to all the reviewers# Oh, and if you're worried, tessa, we can ship them to you using…umm….is Fedex worldwide?

FC: I dunno.

Ora: Eh…well, we'll get them to you somehow #pulls out a phonebook and starts to look up shipping services#

FC: Well, thanks for reading, minna! Please review! And sorry for the distinct lack of Colonels this chapter—the purpose of this was to fill in some of the time gaps and get details out of the way so we can proceed to the fluff. Which is coming. Soon. Promise.

Next time on The Science of Magic: Umbridge, Jack, Teacher!Sam, and quite possibly everyone's favorite little grey men.


	8. Chapter 7

**Science of Magic**

Ora: Guess what, minna? It was _snowing_ here! And that last time that happened, my mom was in high school, so we're all really excited! And happy! And now you get to read chapter 7! Yay!

FC: Wow…usually **I**'m the hyper one…the snow was, however, awesome. Sorry it took so long to get this chapter out…little things like a ten-page research paper and two projects and Ora having a 103ºF (39.4ºC) temperature and FC going on a five-day trip to the middle of nowhere, complete with no internet access, kinda killed us. But, we're back, and the next chappie won't take so long.

* * *

Enjoy! 

Jack lay on his couch, listening to the persistent pounding on the door and Daniel's muffled voice saying "Jack! Jack, I know you're in there!" Ignoring the archaeologist, Jack took another swig of the beer in his hand.

Outside, Daniel glared at the door, willing Jack to emerge. But after several unsuccessful minutes, he sighed and said loudly, "Fine, you explain to General Hammond why you're not there!" Turning on his heel, he walked back to his car.

Jack listened to the sound of the engine starting, and set the empty beer bottle on the coffee table as soon as the sound of the vehicle faded away. Walking into the kitchen to get another beer from the fridge, he saw a picture on the wall. It was Teal'c, Daniel, Sam, and him at O'Malley's one night after arriving back home from another mission to save the world. She looked so happy there, grinning wickedly with her arms draped over Daniel's and his shoulders, sapphire-blue eyes twinkling. The memory suddenly made him angry, and he stalked over to the picture, yanking it off the nail holding it to the wall. He desperately wanted to throw it away, chuck it out the window and ignore the breaking glass and trouble it would cause, but then…something stopped him. He couldn't. He just couldn't do it. So he set it face down on the counter, determined not to look at it again.

* * *

Daniel stopped by again later, with Teal'c this time. Jack highly suspected that the big guy was there to knock down the door if Jack refused to answer again, so when the doorbell rang he dragged himself off the couch and answered it. 

"Go away, Daniel."

The archaeologist looked at him, pushed his glasses further up the bridge of his nose and sighed. "Jack, have you even left the house today?"

Well, that hadn't worked. Not that he had really expected it to, but it had been worth a shot. "No. **Now** will you go away?"

For an answer Daniel squeezed past him and looked into the house with dismay—not that he had any right to talk, Jack thought uncharitably. Daniel's apartment was even worse than his house; well, he amended, it was **almost** worse. The half-unpacked bags from the disastrous London trip hadn't helped much; neither did the dust he hadn't gotten around to cleaning yet, or the empty beer bottles on the coffee table.

He stood silently as Daniel shook his head and straightened out a few of the rooms a bit—enough to clear a few chairs and get rid of some of the dust, at least. He didn't offer him or Teal'c anything to drink, or do anything to make them feel the slightest bit welcome—he wasn't nearly in a good enough mood for that—but that didn't deter the archaeologist, and Jack hadn't thought it would.

Sitting down on the couch, Daniel glanced up at the expressionless Colonel. "Jack, you need to come to work. It will help, trust me." Jack snorted. _Coming from the guy who doesn't know the meaning of the word 'sleep'._ Raising an eyebrow at Jack's reply, Teal'c stood at the bottom the stairs leading to the rest of the house (namely the kitchen, which housed his precious alcohol), and positioning himself in such a way that clearly stated 'You shall not leave this room'.

Choosing to ignore the incursion of the two members of his team, Jack flopped into an armchair and reached for his half-empty bottle.

Daniel, catching the movement out of the corner of his eye, managed to grab the beer first, and dumped it into the plant next to him. "No. Jack, you have to stop this right now."

"Daniel Jackson is correct, O'Neill. You cannot be incapacitated by your consumption of alcohol. The SGC may require your services." Jack glared pointedly at Daniel and then Teal'c; they just didn't get it. He had a couple days more of leave, and he was going to use them, God dammit! If he wanted to stay at home and drink, that was his choice, not theirs. He didn't complain when they chose to stay on base for the same amount of time! Well, not too much…But that wasn't the point. It wasn't any of their damn business whether or not he went back to work. He wouldn't go, and they couldn't make him.

That, of course, was when Daniel decided to pull out the big guns, in a matter of speaking. "Do you really think this is what Sam would want you to do?"

Jack blinked. He did not just say that. He. Did. Not. Just. Say. That. Dammit! "Daniel…"

At least the archaeologist looked slightly abashed. Slightly. "Sorry. That was out of line. But Jack, this is just ridiculous. She would hate seeing you like this, and you know it. Now that Sam finally has a life outside the SGC, you're giving up on everything, and, okay, **maybe** she has a boyfriend—which I still doubt, by the way—but that's no excuse for this. I can't believe I'm saying this, Jack, but…she made a choice, and you need to respect that, and get over it. What you're doing now isn't making this any better."

"Daniel Jackson is correct," Teal'c said soberly from his position by the stairs. "You are allowing this matter to affect your judgment. That is not wise."

"Just…come on, okay, Jack?" Daniel said, and Jack looked at him, really looked, for the first time since this whole crazy mess had started—and what he saw surprised him. Because there was pain—maybe not as much as Jack felt, because right now Jack was of the opinion that no one could feel as crappy as he did, but it was still there, and substantial. It wasn't just him who was feeling betrayed, who had been left. And Jack sighed.

"Fine, Spacemonkey," he said quietly, and Daniel raised one eyebrow—Teal'c had a lot to answer for. "Really? You're going to work with us?"

"I said I was, didn't I?" Jack asked irritably. "Just—"

"We'll wait down here," Daniel told him, and Jack nodded, and headed towards his bathroom. Because if they could do it, could put this behind them and keep working and pretend they didn't hurt, he'd be damned if he couldn't do the same thing. A brief flash, really, of Sam on that street, laughing as the sun picked out a section of blond hair and turned it to molten gold and her eyes sparkled warm in the sun, went through his mind, and he shook it off. Enough was enough. He was going to get on with his life.

* * *

General Hammond didn't even look up at the sound of a knock on his door. "Come in." He heard the door open and looked up to see Sergeant Walters standing there. "Yes, Sergeant?" 

"Sir, you told me to notify you if Colonel O'Neill came on base. Well, he just signed in, sir."

"Get him down here."

"Yes, sir."

Five minutes later there was another knock on the door. "Come in, Jack."

Jack opened the door, walked in, and saluted. "Sir."

General Hammond nodded, "At ease." He set his pen down and continued to stare at the man before him. He appeared to be relaxed, but George could tell by the way that he mechanically sat down, instead of plopping down as usual, that something was up. "Colonel, what are you doing back so early? You had a month off, you've only used a week of that."

Jack shrugged indifferently. "You know me, General, can't stand to be away from the action for long." Jack almost winced at the flat look Hammond gave him which clearly stated, _Like hell, Jack_. "Colonel, what happened." Definitely **not** a question. But not an order either; maybe he could live through this…He stayed silent. "Jack, don't make me order you. Did you, or did you not find Major Carter."

Jack stared the General in the eyes; he _really_ didn't like life right now. "Didn't Daniel or Teal'c tell you, sir?"

"They refused."

"Oh." Jack looked down and took a deep breath. _Here goes nothing._ "Yes, sir, we found her."

That hung in the air for a moment, until Hammond prompted him more; "Well?"

Jack swallowed, grimaced, and then donned an air of detachment that seemed as alien on him as tears. "She's fine, sir. And happy where she is." _Very happy,_ he added sardonically, and silently; but outwardly he continued to stare the general in the eye expressionlessly.

Hammond regarded him for a moment more. It was obvious the man was hurting, but he was hiding it, if not well, than at least professionally. And he really didn't have any other choice, did he? "Very well, Jack. Your team will resume active duty; I'll be assigning temporary members according to the mission."

Jack nodded, got up, and headed for the door. "Thank you, General," he said quietly, and then was gone. He would do his work as normal; and maybe, someday, it would even stop hurting.

* * *

"They're not going to eat you, you know." 

The comment, faintly amused, stopped Sam's pacing for barely a moment, and then she started again, eyes shut tightly. "I know." And she did, but that didn't stop her from being nervous…far from it, in fact. Intellectually knowing that she had taught, or at least lectured, before with no major mishaps, and telling herself that she knew and liked over five of the students in the crowd, wasn't enough to stop the nervousness gnawing at her stomach.

It was almost the Sorting Feast, almost the beginning of her new role as Professor Carter—and it was made all the worse by the guilt that she didn't think would ever really go away. It was bad enough that she was thinking of him already; God, how she wished he was here right now. She could almost imagine him, leaning against the wall and grinning, calming her by his very presence; but all the imagining in the world would never be enough.

She sat down in the chair nearest to her and nervously ran her fingers through her hair. She could do this. She _had_ to do this. If she didn't she'd be letting the Order down. She'd be letting Remus down. She'd be letting _herself_ down. Looking up, she saw Minerva standing by the small door leading to the Great Hall. The woman's face had a small smile that made Sam's mind up.

"Okay, let's do this." Rising, she followed Minerva out the door and into the Great Hall. The sky above was black and starless, not something that inspired much hope in Sam's heart. Most of the teachers were already there, waiting for the students to arrive. She headed over toward Professor Sprout, hoping to get a few words in before the feast, but Dumbledore spoke before she got the chance.

"The students are arriving. Everyone to their seats, if you please."

Sam mentally calmed herself as she made her way to her seat. _I can do this. I can do this. For God's sake, it's only **Arithmancy!** It's all numbers. I can hand it._ And before she even realized what was happening, students were pouring into the hall; all heading for their tables. So far, it looked like very few of them had noticed her. That was good.

She needed something to detract from the butterflies in her stomach, and turned instead to studying her fellow teachers unobtrusively. This was the first time she had seen them all in one place, and the first time she had ever met several of them, and she tried to pin their faces to the names and classes and characteristics Remus had given in his letters those years ago.

She had met Madam Hooch, and liked her, and smiled as the golden-eyed woman grinned at her from her place next to Professor Sinistra, who Sam had spoken with a little. The headmaster sat by them, with an empty chair that she assumed was for Professor McGonagall…Sam didn't have much of a personal opinion of him, yet, but she couldn't help but admire him from the reports Remus had given, full of awe and respect from both his life now and his life as a student. And he had accepted her, wanted her here, even knowing what she was, even knowing that she had never set foot within these walls before she was hired to teach.

Sam turned her head, unobtrusively regarding the woman who sat next to her. Umbridge, her name was—the new Defense against the Dark Arts teacher, and, according to the Order, a Ministry plant. Which was enough to make Sam distrustful, and to have a slight prejudice against the woman; but she would have had it anyway, in her opinion, from Umbridge's high, affected voice and false smile and the way she spoke condescendingly to those around her. Still, Sam hadn't had a chance to be introduced to the woman properly yet, and she really didn't know that much about her, so…

Umbridge turned towards Sam, who took the opportunity to smile and extend her hand. "I'm Sam Carter, the new Arithmancy teacher," she said politely, and Umbridge smiled unpleasantly at her, leaving Sam's hand extended uselessly in air. "You're Lupin's sister, aren't you?" she asked, and Sam frowned, but nodded. "Yes," she said cautiously, and the other professor's smile grew wider and crueler. "However is he doing?" she inquired with a sham of politeness. "I know how hard it is for **his** kind to find jobs now…"

Sam stared harshly at Umbridge, eyes wide. "Excuse me, what is _that_ supposed to mean?" What was she trying to imply? '**His** kind'? What the hell was that supposed to mean! Was that—that…_toad_ trying to refer to….GAH! She turned away in disgust, but beneath the anger Umbridge's comment had invoked, she also felt a deep sadness. Was this what it had been like for her brother here, at school with people like that?

Sam looked around the Hall once more; beneath the twinkling candles, she could see that heads were starting to turn her way. But, apparently, Umbridge was also attracting attention. As she scanned the tables, she saw Harry, Ron, and Hermione in a sea of red and gold. That had to be the Gryffindor table. A little more searching produced the twins' identical red heads surrounded by a group of friends.

Her trained ears heard the sound of the door she had entered through open, and Sam turned to see Professor Grubbly-Plank enter. She had met the woman briefly, and she seemed nice enough; though from what Sam understood, she was only a substitute teacher until the actual Care of Magical Creatures teacher returned from a trip. Shortly after the professor sat down, the doors to the Great Hall opened, and Professor McGonagall entered with the first years trailing behind her like frightened ducklings. She led them to the front of the room, the hall quieting with every footstep she took. By the time she reached the front, every student was silent and watching her. She placed the stool she had been carrying on the floor in front of the staff table and put a ragged old hat on top of it. Sam bit her lip in surprise when its seam ripped open and the hat started to sing.

As the hat stilled and the song's last note echoed through the Hall, the students erupted in applause. While Sam politely clapped, she had one eyebrow raised. _So **that**'s the infamous Sorting Hat. Wonder how it knows all that, too. I wish I could get a look at it, bring it back to the SGC may— _Okay, scratch that. Not going there. That was behind her now. Goddamit! She had already been through this; it was time to stop living in the past.

She started when Minerva's sharp voice announced, "Zeller, Rose", and before she knew what was happening, the girl had been sorted into Hufflepuff, the stool was put away, and Dumbledore was on his feet. He smiled warmly and opened his arms wide, "To our newcomers, welcome! To our old hands—welcome back! There is a time for speech making, but this is not. Tuck in!"

* * *

Yeah…no Asgard…we lied. We're horrible people. On the bright side, though, next chapter will have our buddy Thor for sure. Guaranteed. With a cherry on top. 

Ora: …you have no idea if he'll be in there, do you?

FC: …not really, no.

Anyway, hope you enjoyed it! Next time…Have Sam and Jack **really** given up on their love? Will they **really** stay apart forever? Will Jack **really** continue to act like a mentally stilted five-year-old?

Read and review! Our reviewers are near and dear to us, remember that. And about the extra scene…yeah. We lied. Again. FC actually started it, it's sitting on her desktop accusingly, but she fell into plot holes, and her muses rioted, and Hiei was being a stubborn little shrimp—

Hiei: Hn.

—and refused to get rid of the massive, looming writer's block. So…no extra. But next chapter will MORE than make up for it, promise!


	9. Chapter 8

**The Science of Magic**

Ora: To make up for the lateness of the last chapter, we're posting this one really fast! So, have fun!

* * *

_October 30_

"Professor Carter?"

Sam looked up from the pile of papers waiting to be graded in her desk. "Yes, Ms. Harper?"

"Um, I had a question about the essay we have due…"

As Sam helped the girl, she couldn't help but marvel at…at **everything**. Here she was, almost two months after that traumatic welcome feast, and look at her now! Helping a student with Arithmancy in a school of magic, with a window looking out over the Quidditch pitch in a room with arcane instruments and charts of runes and numbers—and it no longer felt strange. Yes, sometimes she was homesick; for the mountain more than her actual house, oddly enough; and she still woke up at night sometimes with the lingering feeling of strong arms wrapped around her and a warm, familiar voice in her ear; but she had frequent letters from her brother, and **magic**—she had magic. The one thing, the only thing, she had wanted for so long, ached after, dreamed of, cried over, and here it was, constantly around her and no more incredible than breathing. And the school itself was incredible, almost alive; especially now, with Halloween tomorrow. She was looking forward to that, to the celebrations planned—Halloween had never been that much of a big deal for her, but she had heard about the Hogwarts feast and extra celebrations from Remus.

The student thanked her and left, and Sam smiled after her fondly. She liked the students here, as well. Too often she felt like she had missed out on a sizeable chunk of her own childhood; and what with joining the military at eighteen, and being surrounded with the Stargate program, with so many death-defying stunts and moments where it was literally just her and the rest of SG-1 preventing world-wide enslavement and death, the students here, carefree and laughing and light, were a breath of fresh air.

Yes, she was happy. Content. And that was really all she could hope for, wasn't it?

* * *

"Daniel, pack up and get ready to go," Jack called over his shoulder from where he sat, leaning against the trunk of a tree that was a soft, delicate shade of purple, but otherwise normal.

"But Jack—"

Jack held up a hand. "No 'buts'. We're already going to be late getting back, which means that Janet will be unhappy, which means that she's gonna pull out the big needles." Jack shivered at the thought of the doc heading toward him, a malicious glint in her eyes as she pulled out a needle that _had_ to be illegal somewhere.

Daniel quickly nodded. "Right, got to get going…."

Just then, there was a rustle in the bushes behind them and they all turned, weapons drawn. A tall, brown-haired man walked out, a large grin on his face. "Dr. Jackson, you'll never guess what I just found."

Daniel's head perked up, "What? What is it?"

Jack looked between the two. _Damn archeologists_. Before either of them got past the point-of-no-return, Jack interrupted. "Major Thompson, we're **leaving**. Go help Teal'c pack up."

Major Thompson straightened, "Yessir." Jack shook his head as he finished putting a roll of duct tape into his pack. Daniel, thoroughly annoyed, but not stupid enough to ignore the threat that Janet offered, stared at Jack. "What was that for, it could have been important."

Jack looked up. "Trust me, it wasn't. Ready yet?"

"Yes."

"Good." Jack put on his sunglasses. "Okay campers, let's move out."

* * *

Later, after Janet had gotten out all her sadistic urges for the week, and they had sat through the briefing, Jack finally let out a sigh. This was driving him **crazy**! And not just Thompson either; although he was certainly helping. Jack had never really realized just how crucial Sam was to the working of SG-1. She had always been there in her lab, ready to bug or be talked to, had always backed him up unquestioningly on missions, a constant, comforting presence. Without her, things just didn't run right. There was a very obvious, gaping hole in the works, and no way to fill it.

He stuck his head in Daniel's office on his way out. "Go home, Spacemonkey," he said, but there really wasn't much heart in it, and Daniel didn't move. "'Night, Jack," he called back, eyes still glued to the jumbled mess of photos and mission reports in front of him, and Jack shook his head as he walked down the hallways and up to his car. In fact, it was only when he was sitting on his bed that he allowed his head to drop into his hands. God, he missed her. It had been less than two months, and he missed her more than he had imagined could be possible. And for all he knew, and with his luck, he might never see her again.

* * *

Halloween passed quickly for Sam, and before she knew it the sun was going down. Only an hour or so until the feast, she thought as she sat at the desk in her office, watching as some of the students got some last-minute practicing done out on the quidditch pitch. From here, she couldn't tell which team they were—it was too far away to make out the colors on their uniform—but she liked to watch them anyway. Surprisingly, it reminded her of home. Everyone zipping about, each trying to do their own job; some were the beaters, trying to protect everyone, while at the same time trying to take out the other side. Others, the majority of the people, were hard at work, juggling everything, trying to make it further without all of their hard work making it into enemy hands. Then there was the small group who stayed in one spot, guarding Earth. And last, the group who went out to capture the prize. The ones who were always out there, constantly looking for one thing that would hopefully kill the enemy.

She quickly shook her head, clearing away those thoughts. Checking her watch, she realized that it was time to head down to the feast. Clearing away the papers on her desk, she thought about what everyone back in Colorado Springs was doing. Cassie was probably still in school, wearing her costume. _I wonder what it is this year. _Sam had heard that Janet had been sneaking cloth from off-world, and while she wouldn't put it past the doctor, she wasn't sure what the outcome would be.

Sam was brought out of her thoughts as her military instincts automatically made her step to the right. A second later, two tall, redheaded boys plowed through the space her body had been occupying moments earlier. A short, "Sorry, Professor," was all that remained after the two Weasleys rounded a corner and vanished from sight. Sam smiled and continued down the corridor.

* * *

Jack didn't even remember that it was Halloween until he passed the doc in the hallways and she reminded him, smiling, to stop by before Cassie went out trick-or-treating. Her costume was especially good this year; apparently, Janet had snuck a few samples of clothing gathered in various ways from off-world, so it promised to be impressive.

But, of course, he had a briefing tonight—one of the UAVs had found something that Daniel wanted a look at. Good ol' Daniel could always find something to have a meeting about, couldn't he? And that also meant that Jack had to actually get all his work out of the way early. Dang.

* * *

"...also seem to be quite old. If we get the chance, I'd like to take a look at them too."

General Hammond nodded. "Very well, Dr. Jackson. You'll leave at 0800 tomorrow. Dismissed." As they all stood up to leave, there was a flash of white light. It quickly cleared, and Thor was standing before them.

Jack smiled. "Thor, old buddy! How've you been?"

"Well, O'Neill. However, recent events have come to pass that require me to ask for your assistance."

Jack's eyebrows furrowed. Trouble with the Asgard was usually bad news for all of them. "What happened?"

"I'm afraid that I cannot discuss it at this location. But I must stress that we need your help." Thor turned to Hammond. "If it is acceptable to you, General Hammond, I wish to borrow SG-1 for a short amount of time."

"Of course, but you might want to know that Major Carter is not here right now."

Thor inclined his head. "That did not escape my attention. But she is not needed at the moment. If you will excuse us."

There was another blinding flash, and Jack, Daniel, and Teal'c were all gone; leaving the General to wonder what, exactly, was going on.

* * *

Sam sat at the staff table, watching the students take their places at the tables and look with anticipation at the empty plates and platters before them. She was glad Halloween was almost over, she had to admit—the day had been long and tiring, and she wanted little more than to go to bed and get as much sleep as possible before classes tomorrow. And she didn't like feasts very much anyway—parties had never been her thing. Unbidden, her mind flew to Jack, and she smiled a tiny bit—parties had never been his thing either, formal ones at least—before she wiped her face smooth. The feast was about to begin.

* * *

Jack turned to face Thor. "So, what's up?"

"You are in need of my assistance."

Jack blinked, but Teal'c spoke first. "Did you not say that you were in need our help?"

"I did."

Daniel started, looking confused, which was just about how Jack felt. "But, then why are you saying that we need your help? What's going on here?"

Jack finally found his voice. "Yeah, why are you—" In an instant, and a flash of light, SG-1 was gone again.

* * *

Dumbledore was the last to arrive in the hall, and he did so smiling, sitting down and waving a hand as the plates and platters filled with food, blossoming into bright color. Sam smiled at the sight, and reached to pour herself a glass of pumpkin juice—

—only to spill the stuff all over the tablecloth as, with a distinctive white flash, Jack, Teal'c, and Daniel materialized in the middle of the Great Hall.

Sam could only sit there in shock, for a moment. How could she not? SG-1, **SG-1**, had just…just…and then, she saw Jack open his mouth, and saw Umbridge's eyes widen as they all processed what had just happened, and her military training took over, for which she was profoundly grateful. _Get them out. Get them out **now**. _And she obeyed, moving out of her seat and towards them with speed she didn't know she had, and grabbing Jack by the collar and Daniel by the wrist as she bodily dragged her team out of the Great hall. Teal'c followed, thank god; she didn't think she could have managed the dragging as well with him.

Once outside, her hands dropped, and she leaned against the cool stone of the hallway with a sigh. A teacher would be coming out any moment now, but…

"**_Carter?_**" That was Jack, who sounded about as confused as she felt; and Sam sighed again. This was just great.

"Hello, sir."

* * *

Ora: #cheerfully# See! We _did_ have Thor this chapter! And guess what? Why Sam Left the Wizarding World is in the next chapter! Yay! (I think I had too much sugar today, gotta lay off the Crunch bars….)

FC: Yup, and…#grabs basket# lots of cookies to Lt. Col. Elphaba Carter, Delta Operator, nwfairy, and Bill Everyman for reviewing!

So, see the nice shiny button in the corner? See how it shimmers and glints in the light? Don't you feel the uncontrollable urge to click it?


	10. Author's Note

Ora here. I am very sorry to say that SoM is going to have to be put on hold for the moment. How long is unknown. One of my sister's _lovely_ friends went to some website on my computerand got a virus that deleted/corrupted one of my major system files. So, please hang in there whileItry to get it fixed; and know that this is frustrating me as much as it is you, if not more.

Now, I must go. There's someone I've got to go strangle...

Oralindie


	11. AU MirrorFluff

**SoM Extra! Mirror Fluff**

Another extra for our faithful reviewers! Seriously, you guys ROCK…116 reviews! **116 reviews!**

Ora: Excuse FC while she goes and has a minor heart attack. She'll be okay…probably…anyway, this is for all the awesome people who reviewed, because we have over a hundred and also because the fic is going be on hold because of my computer troubles…Die, May! Die!

FC: I'm back! And while Ora's muttering psychotically to herself in the corner, I'll just say that this little moment takes place sometime when the group are at Hogwarts…you aren't getting more than that, people…and was written by myself in math because Ora had taken away my drawing paper and I was willing to do about anything to avoid the doom of logarithms. It's not quite as fluffy as the last, but several people complained about almost gagging on the stuff, so I'm sure it'll be fine. Right? Right!

Enjoy!

* * *

The room they entered was old, and seemed unused; dust swirled through gold notes from the high windows. It was bare as well, except for an old mirror on the far side of the room. Jack headed to it curiously, Sam right behind him and both ignoring Daniel's dire warnings; he had had more than enough experience with strange mirrors. So had they all, in fact. It seemed ordinary enough, however, as Jack stood before it; the only reflection was him, staring back at himself, faintly expectant, Sam a little behind. And then…then Jack's breath caught as mirror-him winked and grinned, and the other Sam slid her hand through his, leaning against him with an ease born of intimacy. Then they both smiled, one of her slender hands moving to cradle his cheek as his own hand slid tenderly across her back—and Jack jumped at the fell of a hand on his own back, one that was tentative and quickly withdrawn.

"Sir? Are you all right?" He looked behind him, met the blue gaze of his 2IC. "Yeah. I thought I saw something…" He stepped to the side, watched as she moved to take his place. The mirror stayed normal, though, reflecting her, looking at the glass quizzically as a ray of sunlight caught her hair…and then her expression changed, to shock, to wonder, to a wistful, sad, powerfully burning desire, and she stepped away quickly.

Now it was his turn to step forward, features creasing into worry. "Are you okay?" _What did you see_, his mind added, but he didn't say it.

"Yes, sir," she replied, still slightly shaken—and then she stepped away even further from the mirror and its images; the future? An alternate reality? A might-have-been? Jack didn't know, and somehow, he didn't want to find out. "I'm fine."

Somehow, Jack doubted it.

* * *

Well, hope you liked it! Review! Review like the wind! Ahem…and SoM will be back up the SECOND it can be, promise. Thanks! 


	12. Chapter 9

Ora: I do have one thing to say to unknownwarrior before we begin:

I'm afraid that that won't work. My plot bunnies have abandoned me. Once, they left me in a deep plot hole for a couple months. All alone. They don't care. #sob#

FC: #pats on back# Anyway, here's the next chapter for all of your enjoyment! Sorry it was out late…

* * *

Jack stared at his 2IC for a second, trying to figure out what was happening. "Carter! What's going on! Where are we? Who are those people? And **what** are you **wearing**!"

Sam opened her mouth to say something, anything, but she didn't know what. She didn't think that 'Sir, you're standing in a small room outside the dining hall of a school that teaches children how to use magic' quite cut it. Luckily for her (or perhaps not), the door that she had just dragged the team through opened, and they all turned to look as a tall and pale man with greasy black hair stormed in. "Professor Carter, **what** is the meaning of this?" His voice was calm, but plainly irritated; she could hear anger laced subtly through the question.

"**_Professor!_**" Jack shouted, causing Snape to turn his piercing gaze toward the Colonel. O'Neill didn't flinch. "Let me rephrase my earlier question: Carter, what the **hell** is going on here!" Again, Sam didn't know what to say—what **was **there to say, really?— so she dropped her head in her hands, about to snap because her frustration and daily limit of weird-and-impossible-things-happening were almost to the point of no return.

Daniel, who had decided that it was in his best interests to stay out of the way, stood rooted to the spot, looking back and forth between the three. Teal'c, who had come to the same conclusion as Daniel, stood next to the archeologist, looking at Sam with one eyebrow raised.

"Professor?" Snape asked again—Sam got the feeling that if someone didn't say something that made sense very shortly, he was going to start cursing people, in the literal sense—and she took a deep breath, only to be interrupted by—

"May I ask, Samantha?"

Every head turned to the doorway, Jack's hand going automatically to the gun at his waist—did he ever take it off?—to see Dumbledore standing there, looking faintly amused. "Well, Headmaster…" Sam trailed off, because she didn't have any more of an idea than anyone else, really.

"I see." Yes, his eyes **were **twinkling. She was starting to get a real inkling about the positively evil sense of humor Remus had told her about. "I think we're fine here, Severus," he said gently, but Snape got the message, his robe snapping out behind him as he stalked out of the room. "Now, Samantha…why don't you take your guests down to your rooms so you can all catch up?" And before anyone could say anything else, he was out the door as well.

"Um…Sam?" The voice, tentative and wary, was Daniel's…he had apparently decided either that it was safe to speak, or that someone had to.

"Yes, Daniel?"

"Well…ah…" He thought it should be obvious, really, and after a moment Sam sighed heavily. "Well, I guess you guys should come down to my room. It should be safe to talk there…about everything." I.e., about the Stargate program, and how, exactly, her team had managed to get themselves dumped in the middle of the Great Hall at Hogwarts.

"No, I think here is fine," Jack snapped, and Daniel winced, because Jack was **mad**. He had gotten over the initial shock, and now all he was concerned about was the fact that Sam was here, she knew what was going on, she wasn't telling them, and, overall, Jack was feeling like he knew a hell of a lot less than he usually did.

"Actually, sir…"

"What? Is the room bugged? Is there anyone here besides us, because as far as I can tell, this is just fine." Now he was being deliberately antagonistic, and Sam felt her hackles rise. "Well, sir—"

"Ooh, Samantha, who are your friends?"

Jack, Teal'c, and Daniel's heads turned collectively to the voice, while Sam's head hit her hand with considerable force. No one really noticed, though…they were still occupied with the fact that Violet had chosen that rather inopportune moment to speak.

"Sam…is that…how…" Daniel was speechless…it didn't happen very often, and some other time Sam might have been proud. Jack, though, was considerably more direct.

"Carter, did that painting just talk?"

* * *

The Great Hall was filled with hundreds of whispered voices; together, they all became a low murmur, but three of the students didn't notice.

Harry, Hermione, and Ron watched silently as Snape quickly stood up and followed Professor Carter and the…um…other people…through the door. They could all tell that the potions master was **not** a happy man.

"Who do you think they are?" Harry asked, turning to face his friends.

Ron shook his head and swallowed. "I dunno, mate; but this can't be good, whatever it is."

Hermione, still eyeing the door, spoke in a low voice. "I think we need to be more concerned as to how they got in here."

"Yeah, but did you see Professor Carters face? She was white as a sheet! They might be killers or something!"

"Honestly, Ron! Did it **look** like she thought they would kill her! **She** dragged **them** out, for Merlin's sake!" Ron had the decency to look sheepish before replying, "Well, then who are they?"

Harry stared hard at the door that everyone—Dumbledore had just gone inside—had disappeared through and spoke slowly. "I don't know; but she does. She knows those people."

Hermione knit her eyebrows; something was bugging her. One of the men…"Did you see the forehead of that one man?"

Ron answered before Harry. "What? You mean the big bloke?" Hermione nodded her head. "Yeah, he had some sort of tattoo or something." Harry turned around to face his friends again; Hermione was still thinking, and Ron was staring at the door and slowly eating a pile of mashed potatoes. "Hermione, what is it?"

She snapped her head up and looked straight into his eyes. "Harry, where is your invisibility cloak?" There was the sound of a fork clattering as it hit the table and Ron choked. "What?"

Hermione continued, determined. "I'm going to have to borrow it tonight."

Ron was perplexed. "'Mione, are you feeling okay? Because I could **swear** that you just said you were going out after curfew. You know, as in _breaking the rules_."

"Dire circumstances call for dire actions. I have to get to the library; I think that I've seen that symbol before."

* * *

SG-1 was quiet as they walked through the halls of Hogwarts. Daniel was openly gawking at the architecture and the paintings, many of whom were gawking back; Teal'c was admiring the scenery as well, if a little less openly; Jack was divided between glowering anger and the urge to yell, "Cool!"; and Sam was biting her lip, occasionally glancing back at the rest of her team as she led them through the halls.

Ahead of them, a staircase started to slowly move, stone grinding against stone, and she quickened her pace; that staircase was the quickest way to reach her rooms, and right now, all she wanted was to bury her head in her pillow until it all went away. God, she was confused. She had been doing fine, wonderful, she honestly **liked **it here and she had almost managed to forget about them, about everyone, about **him**…and now here they were, and she was torn between yelling at them and crying in relief. Because, when they had first arrived, before shock had kicked in, before she had started to panic…her first emotion, the first thing that had gone through her head, was happiness. Overwhelming joy, actually, at seeing them again, at seeing their faces…his face…

"Hurry up," she called behind her, and sighed in relief when they all managed to catch the staircase before it completely detached from the floor and swung in a wide arc across the air. Maybe once they were in her rooms she would be able to explain, and this would get a little less complicated…

Wait. Rooms. Tabitha. Password.

_Oh, **shit!**_

By the time they approached the witch leaning against the tower wall, her focus not on the telescope beside her but on the people approaching, Sam had practically gnawed a hole in her lip. This had the potential to be the single most embarrassing thing that had **ever** happened to her. Ever. Broca Divide humiliating. Memory stamp humiliating.

"Hi, Tabitha," she said warily as they approached. "These are my friends, Daniel Jackson, er…Murray, and…Jack O'Neill." Before her, the portrait's eyes widened, then narrowed, then crinkled in glee…but she stayed silent, and Sam sighed in relief. "My name is Tabitha deWarter," she said regally as the portrait swung outward, and, at Sam's urging, they all entered the rooms beyond.

As soon as everyone was in the room, Sam walked over to the nearest chair and sat down. She let her head fall into her hands once again, too tired and confused to care. What was it with her life! No matter how bad it was, it **always** became more complex. And she still didn't know what to say to them; it's not like they would believe her! _I mean, we always tell the people we see that 'magic doesn't exist' and 'it's only technology', but this **is** magic. It's **real**! How can I explain that?_ Daniel clearing his throat brought her from her thoughts. She looked up to see Teal'c and Daniel looking at her expectantly while Jack tried to glare a hole in the wall.

"Right, sorry." She sighed. "Ask a question, and I'll answer to the best of my ability."

Jack continued to sulk, so Daniel asked the first question. "Okay, first of all, where are we?"

Sam winced; she had been hoping for more time. "A school called Hogwarts."

Daniel's eyebrows shot up. "Hogwarts?"

"Hogwarts."

"O-kay. What are you doing here?"

"I'm a teacher."

"What are you teaching?"

Sam paused. What was she going to say? That she was a math teacher, maybe? But she couldn't lie to them! God, she hated this! "I'm…I…" she trailed off.

Daniel looked at her with concern in his eyes and Teal'c's stance held a similar meaning. Jack had turned toward her, his glare not quite as intense. "Carter?"

"I'm sorry, sir; I just know you're not going to believe me."

"Why wouldn't we?" Jack asked, suspicion edging into his voice.

"Because I teach Arithmancy, sir."

The colonel raised an eyebrow. "You teach **what**?"

"Sam, did you say _Arithmancy_? As in divination?"

Sam looked somewhat sheepish as she answered Daniel's question. "Yes, as in divination."

"Major Carter, what kind of school is this?"

"It—it's a magic school."

Jack gave her an odd look. "_Magic_?"

"Yes, sir. The full title is Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry." She was **so** dead.

There was silence for a moment after that…Sam was wincing, Jack was gaping, and Daniel was obviously trying to figure out what to say.

"Uh…Sam…"

She sighed. "You don't believe me."

"…Not really, no."

God, this was frustrating. If she'd had a way to prove it to them…but she didn't. She could only rely on them trusting her word, when she knew perfectly well that if she were them, she wouldn't trust herself either. "Look, I can't prove it, but—"

There was a sharp crack, and Dobby blinked up at Sam from under the weight of a large tray, apparently unconcerned that Jack and Teal'c both had weapons aimed at him. "Good evenings, Professor Carter and guests!" he said politely, and Sam smiled at him—she had gotten over the shock of the usual mode of house-elf arrival some time ago. "Hello, Dobby." A quick look over her shoulder showed all of her teammates speechless in surprise—in two of them this was evident by slack-jawed shock, in the third by a delicately raised eyebrow. "Jack, Daniel—" _Oh, screw it—_"Teal'c, this is Dobby. He's a house-elf."

"…Really…" Daniel said weakly, and Sam had the sudden urge to smirk—she had been **way** too influenced by her CO—former CO?—'s sense of humor. "Yes. And, wow, this is convenient. Dobby, would you mind doing me a favor?"

"Nots at all, miss," he said with a grin, and she grinned back. "Great, thanks. Listen…" she eyed her teammates speculatively. "Would you mind, I don't know, levitating something?"

Dobby nodded, and a moment later one of the books on the end table lifted gracefully into the air.

Another glance behind her showed that her teammates looked impressed, but not terribly convinced—considering the alien devices they had previously run into, she wasn't surprised—and she sighed. "It's real. It's…well, magic."

"Sam, you of all people—"

Sam interrupted him, "Daniel, I'm not crazy, I'm not lying, and there is absolutely no technology involved in what you just saw. Please trust me."

And that was when Jack lost it. "Trust you! You **left**, Carter! Without so much a word to any one of us! How do you expect us to trust you when you **lied** to us! Tell me, how!"

Sam stared at him, too shocked for words. She shook her head. "I…I'm sorry, sir. I—I have to get to bed. I'll see you all in the morning." She rushed past them all, closing the door behind her in a hurry as she hastened to get away from him. She couldn't stand to see him like that. The hurt, the _pain_ in his eyes was too much for her. She couldn't handle this right now. She changed into a soft pair of pajama bottoms and a t-shirt and climbed into bed, falling into a light slumber a couple minutes after she lay down.

* * *

"Hermione. Hermione!" Harry hissed as they descended a set of stairs on their way to the library. It was just after eleven o'clock and the three were all huddled under Harry's invisibility cloak, trying not to let any limbs poke out as they scampered away from the safety of the Gryffindor Tower.

Hermione tried to look toward Harry, but her elbow stuck out, so she went back to her previous position. "What, Harry?"

"You sure about this? I mean, what are we going to find out about a tattoo in the school library?"

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Yes, Harry, I'm sure."

They stayed silent the rest of the way, each of them wary of Filch and his cat. After what seemed like hours, they reached the doors to the library, looming and rather ominous in the darkness that engulfed the castle. Quickly, they hurried forward and opened the door a fraction. As soon as they were all through, Ron pulled off the cloak and set it on a nearby table. Hermione looked around at the vast collection of books. "Okay, let's begin."

* * *

FC: Aaaand there you have it! Hope it's satisfactory, people! And yes, I know that there is still hardly any fluff, but when you think about it, Jack and Sam really need the chance to work stuff out before they regain the level of comfort they use to have. Once they do, though…#evil grin#.

Ora: Hi! Like it? Good! I'm glad! And thanks so much to all our reviewers! It's happy!

FC: Sorry about her…she's happy because she's the only one whose experiment didn't explode in Chemistry today. #mumbles# Curse you, Carter clone… Reviews are happy, she's right, and go to feed our muses so they don't go on strike (again).

Next time on Science of Magic: Will Jack and Sam EVER be together? Will the Trio find what they're looking for in the Hogwarts library? And where, exactly, does Peeves fit into all this?


	13. Chapter 10

**The Science of Magic**

Well, here's chapter 10. We're really, **really** sorry it took so long to come out, but real life has been giving both of us a really thorough beating lately. Here it is, though, and the next chapter should be up soon. Like, tomorrow soon. Or day after, at the latest, because FC doesn't have the gene that allows people to write fic in order, and she's had over four pages from the upcoming bit written for **ages**. So…it's coming soon, and enjoy this chapter!

* * *

None of them really did anything for a long moment after Sam disappeared into what they guessed was her bedroom—and then Jack cursed briefly, and shoved off from where he had been leaning against the arm of a sofa, and headed for the door. 

"Jack? Where do you think you're going?" Daniel asked from where he had been sitting in an armchair, and his eyes widened at Jack's curt, "For a walk."

"Um…you do know that we're in a place we know nothing about, that could be **magic**?"

"It's fine," Jack replied, already pushing the door open, and a moment later he disappeared from view. It wasn't, of course. This, exploring a new and potentially dangerous environment that he knew absolutely nothing about, had to be one of the stupider things he had done—and anyone who knew exactly the kind of things he had done in the past could appreciate that—but he needed to. Needed to get away from Daniel and Teal'c and Sam and try to figure out what the hell was going on. How the hell he was feeling. He didn't know, really. He had been an emotional roller coaster (It was actually pretty similar to the one Sam had been riding, but neither of them knew that, and maybe neither of them would have cared) from the moment Thor dropped them in the middle of wherever-they-were, and he had seen Sam, and his heart had leapt in his chest, but she hadn't been happy to see him at all, had this complete new life, apparently, where no one even knew they existed. And now…magic? Come on. He didn't know much about science, true, but with the things he had seen, this was easily explainable with technology.

And that was the problem, really. Jack had always needed to see things to believe them. Leaps of faith were…hard, for him. That's why he had never really thought Sam had feelings for him, except for those of a superior, and, maybe, a friend. It was impossible for them to show, so to him, they couldn't exist. And now…sure he had just seen a book floating around. He had come back from the dead with technology, and seen things become invisible, so some sort of anti-gravity device (yes, as opposed to popular belief, he **did** know what gravity was) was by no means a stretch of the imagination. And he had seen some pictures move—an advanced computer screen or something. He simply wasn't able to believe that the explanation was something invisible.

Jack's musing stopped when he looked around and realized, quite abruptly, that he had run into a dead end. "Dammit," he muttered, and turned around, heading down a different corridor that was stone and covered in tapestries and pictures that rustled sleepily in their frames…and then he heard voices. That made him reflexively move towards his gun, and then he identified the voices as belonging to children…well, young adults, at least, and he relaxed, and headed towards them, shoving open a heavy wood door, and emerging in…a library? _Oh, Daniel would **love** this,_he though absently, squinting in the darkness to see three heads—one impossibly curly brown bent next to a messy black one, across from vivid red—around a table that was covered in books and loose papers.

They hadn't noticed him yet, so he decided to see what three students were doing out of bed when it was obvious they shouldn't be. Sneaking up behind the redhead (maybe all those years of black ops _were_ good for something), he looked over his shoulder, shadows keeping the colonel hidden. As soon as his mouth was right next to the boy's ear, he said, rather loudly, "What'cha doin'?" The student in question nearly squealed in fright; lucky for him, his friends (Jack assumed they were his friends) both clamped their hands over his mouth before much sound escaped. The boy with black hair turned toward Jack, light reflecting a little off his glasses. "What was that for?"

Jack, who was still a little grumpy, retorted "What are you doing here? I'm _quite_ sure that there's a curfew."

Neither of the boys spoke, but Jack noticed that the girl's eyes had gone big. "_You're_ one of the men that appeared in the Great Hall, aren't you?" He didn't say anything for a moment, but chose instead to check out his surroundings.

As he had thought, this was most _definitely_ a library, and a big one at that. All the lights were out except for the one on the table, and there didn't appear to be anyone else around. From where he stood, it looked like the only exit was the door behind him; there could be one hidden in the paneling behind the counter to his left, but he couldn't be sure. He made out what looked to be a large window at the other end of the room, but the new moon made it impossible to tell. What he did know was that there were three presumably unarmed students sitting before him, all of them giving him odd looks.

"Hm? Yeah, that was me…" Jack replied absently, and almost instantly regretted it, because it seemed like a floodgate had just been opened.

"Really? How did you apparate into the hall? Who came with you? How do you know Professor Carter? Why are you here? What's your name?"

"Ah!" Jack yelped, holding up his hand as if the questions were a physical blow. "Easy! And, um…" he answered the last question (it was, coincidentally, the only one he could remember) "My name's Jack O'Neill."

That shut the bushy-haired girl up, but it opened a floodgate of an entirely different kind, that came from the red-haired kid this time…the other two had finally unclamped their hands from over his mouth. "Wait, are you **the** Jack O'Neill? **Wicked!**"

Jack blinked, then blinked again. "Uh…I wasn't aware I was famous…"

"Professor Carter has said so much about you," the girl said authoritatively, and apparently she had decided that he wasn't going to attack, because she stuck her hand out in a businesslike manner. "My name's Hermione Granger, by the way. And this—" she nodded her head towards the redhead, looking faintly scornful, "is Ronald Weasley, and—" her head went the other way, towards the kid with glasses, "is Harry Potter." All three watched him carefully, and maybe at another time he would have noticed, but right now Jack's mind was whirling. She…had talked about him? "She's talked about me?" He did his best to sound casual…whether it worked or not, he really had no idea.

Ron gave Jack a funny look. "Are you kidding? She wouldn't **stop** talking about you! The colonel this, Jack that; no offense, but it got a bit annoying. I think Remus was the only one who could remotely tolerate it."

"Remus? You mean her brother?"

"Yeah, that's right. But listen, mate, how _did_ you get in the Great Hall?"

Hermione nodded. "Yes, according to Professor Carter you're a muggle, so you shouldn't know how to apparate. Beside that, it's _impossible_ to apparate into Hogwarts."

Jack blinked. Muggle? Apparate? What were they talking about? Well, he could find out from Sam…and they didn't need to know everything. "Um…not sure how we got here, really….We were in the conference room one second, then here the next." Almost the truth.

Harry looked at Jack with what appeared to be mistrust. "You say you have absolutely **no** idea how you got here, but you don't seem very surprised about any of this." Ron and Hermione looked at Jack expectantly, waiting to see how he'd answer.

"I've seen some odd things in my day; I don't think that a magic school is at the top of the list." _Yeah, I think that the Nox and Oma have taken that top spot_. He looked at the three of them, wondering how much they know. It was apparent that they knew Sam to some degree; it was more than your average student-teacher relationship. "So, how do you all know Carter?"

The three were silent for a moment, each looking rather reluctant to say. _Hiding something, are we?_ Eventually, Hermione spoke, "We met this summer. Remus was one of Harry's father's best friends, so we went to visit him and she was staying with him. We talked some; not about much, but we all got along."

"Ah." They all stayed silent for a moment after that, everyone lost in their own thoughts; Jack, thinking of Sam—she talked about him. She missed him…and he just blew up at her…but, dammit, what else was he going to do? She left! **Left**! Left the SGC, left the team, dammit, left him…

He needed to stop thinking about this, or he was going to go crazy. Crazier. "So…what's the name of this school? Hogwarts?"

About half an hour later, Jack cursed. Quite a lot, actually, and Daniel would be smirking if he was here—thank god he wasn't, because this would be even more humiliating. He was lost. He had only left the library a few minutes ago, telling the kids to go to bed but not really expecting them too, and already he didn't recognize anything around him…although, considering those the paintings that had been moving before, and what little stuff the kids—the girl, Hermione, right?—mostly, had told him, maybe it wasn't really his fault. But still…grumbling, Jack kicked the wall, and jumped for the hundredth time that evening what something on it—_painting, it was probably a painting_—spoke.

"Lost, are you?"

He shrugged, and decided to go along with it…maybe this whole place was actually magic, maybe not, he was withholding judgment until he and Sam—Carter, now, she was here and he was **not **going to call her Sam—had a nice, long talk. "Is it that obvious?"

"Afraid so," the voice replied, and at the familiar sound Jack squinted until the painting became clear. "Hey! You're that…painting…person…that was on the wall by Sa—Carter's door!" Name, name…ah. He forgot; it wasn't like he had been paying attention.

"It's Tabitha deWarter, and yes, I am the portrait guarding Samantha's door," she said, leaning forward on the desk depicted in the portrait she was currently occupying, obviously amused, and he raised an eyebrow. "Ah. So, shouldn't you be…guarding, then?"

"This is much more entertaining," she replied and he scowled. Then—

"Would you like to know the way back?"

_Yes! _"Er…sure."

"Follow me," she told him regally, and he started along the corridor, following the dark shape of the witch—was she dead? God, that was weird—through the portraits that lined the halls.

"Samantha has talked about you," she told him; out of the blue, really; after they had been going for…ten minutes? Twenty? Time seemed harder to judge in this odd, dark, journey. "So I've heard." And he did **not **want to know what she had said, he did **not**…ah, he did, who was he kidding? Not even himself, anymore. "All good things, right?"

"You are very special to her," Tabitha told him, and he stopped, then started again. "We're friends."

Just then they arrived at the entrance to Carter's room, but Jack would later swear that he saw Tabitha smirk as she opened the portrait, and say, in a somewhat mocking voice, "Of course you are."

* * *

When Jack woke up the next morning, he found Teal'c standing by one of the many book cases, reading the titles. Daniel, on the other hand, was sprawled across one of the couches with one arm and one leg hanging off the edge and the foot on the other leg was on top of the couch. Jack was amazed that the archeologist hadn't fallen off already. 

The colonel turned away, silently chuckling, and walked toward what he assumed was the bathroom, his feet silent on the plush carpet that covered the floor. His guess proved to be right when he opened the door and was blissfully rewarded with a porcelain bowl. He closed the door a little and walked further in; the room was…different. He wasn't used to seeing sconces actually _in_ the shower, but hey, it was supposed to be magic, right?

The door behind him opened and he turned to find himself quite literally face to face with the woman of his dreams. She stopped a moment and blinked before realizing what was wrong. "Oh…uh…sorry, sir." Yes, that **was** a blush he saw coloring her cheeks. "I'll just…go…." And before he could open his mouth, Jack found a shut door in his face rather than Sam. Great.

* * *

Hermione, Ron, and Harry sat in the empty 5th year boys' dorm. Ron sat on his bed and Harry sat on his with Hermione lying on her stomach next to him. "Right, so, what **exactly **did we learn last night?" 

Hermione looked at Ron, "Not much. Only that the tattoo was a symbol for Apophis."

"And that there shouldn't be **any** way for them to have gotten in the school like they did," Harry added.

"Fat lot of good that does us. Something we already knew, and the tattoo is a symbol for…what?"

Hermione sighed. "Apophis, Ron. He was the Egyptian god of evil and destruction, usually appearing in the guise of a crocodile or snake…the ancient Egyptians believed that every day he attempted to devour the sun god Ra and—"

"Okay, I get it!" Ron said, raising his arms as if to ward off more information.

"So the question is," Hermione mused, looking thoughtfully out the window, "Why does one of those people have his symbol on his forehead? He was never worshipped by any religious factions, as far as records show…"

"Why don't we just ask Professor Carter?" The two looked at Ron as if he was mad. "What? Maybe she came up with some new spell or something!"

Harry thought for a moment. "It would explain why she knew them…and we all know that she's really smart. It would make sense."

Hermione rolled her eyes. _Boys_. "No. It's not only very improbable, it's impossible."

Ron looked taken back. "There's no reason to be jealous, Hermione. You can't figure out every new spell, you know."

"Ron, have you ever **seen** the Professor cast a spell?"

"Well…no."

"Have you ever seen her use **any** magic?"

"…No…."

"So…." Hermione drifted off.

Ron furrowed his eyebrows, "So, what? It's not like you use any spells in Arithmancy. It's all numbers, Hermione."

Hermione dropped her head, frustrated. "Harry, do **you** understand?"

"I think I know what you're getting at, but I don't think it's that likely Mione."

Ron glanced between the two. "**What** isn't likely!"

Hermione lifted her head, "Professor Carter is a squib, Ron!"

* * *

Kudos to everyone who got it right. You're awesome! Next time…fluff. **Major **fluff. 

Ora: You can see it sprouting…it looks a bit like wisps of cotton coming out of her ears.

FC:…I would take offense to that if it wasn't true.

Review, please! It makes us happy, and provides extra motivation. You guys ROCK!

Ora: #sneaks back in# And I just have to ask…to anyone who watched the American Idol finale (I'm ashamed to say I did), is it just me, or did it look like Clay had just walk out of an anime movie? Seriously!


	14. Chapter 11

**The Science of Magic**

Sorry this took so long, minna. We have one week of school, then one week of finals left. And we've been very busy because of it. Yes, we know we promised to get it out soon…we lied. We're bad, bad people. And the majority of the credit for this chapter goes to FC, who wrote the four-page fluff scene many months ago because she doesn't know how to write fics in order.

**Warning:** Major fluff scene ahead! Any and all injures resulting from squealing too loudly for your neighbor and/or jumping up and down to the point where you slip and break your ankle are **not** our fault. You will not be compensated. Read at your own risk.

* * *

"Hey, Jack?"

The colonel started, jerking from his half-comatose state by the windowsill. "Huh?"

Daniel pushed up his glasses, shifting from side to side like a really excited puppy. "Teal'c and I are going to go check out that library you find, okay?"

Heh. Poor Teal'c. Jack wouldn't wish Daniel in a new library on anyone. Well…maybe Apophis. Anise… Anyway. That…left him all alone.

"You should go talk to Sam, you know," Daniel said, in a tone Jack couldn't quite read, and when he turned around, the portrait was already closing.

Should he? Hell, could he? And then Jack sighed, and tucked in his chin. He had faced things most people couldn't even imagine, he could deal with her. Right. He could do this. How hard could it be?

He found her after about half an hour of searching; so, about ten minutes after he stopped enjoying the castle and started cursing the utter impossibility if actually finding anything. He was getting the feeling that this castle had a sadistic sense of humor. She was in what he assumed was her office, bent over a stack of papers, a…quill? Right…moving over the paper.

"Hey."

She looked up, then back down; she had been desensitized to him showing up when she was working, because no matter where they were, or what she was doing, he always managed it. "Hello, sir."

So maybe she was a little pissed, she thought mutinously as he looked at her, frowned and turned away. She was entitled. He could have listened to her explain, could have tried to understand, but no, he just—

"Hey, what're they doing?" Sam looked up from the paper she was supposed to be grading and frowned, most of her thoughts still on how irritating men in general were, him in particular, and whether Ms. Brocklehurst deserved half credit. "Who?"

From the corner of her eye she could see him gesture expansively to the window, and its view of the Quidditch pitch. "Those kids. They're out there walking—" He broke off and turned fully to the glass, jaw dropping open. "Whoa!"

Sam couldn't help but smile despite her irritation as she marked the paper and put it aside, standing up to join Jack at the window and see the Hufflepuff quidditch team in the air. "It's amazing, isn't it?"

His mouth opened and closed for a few seconds before he got out an emphatic, "_Hell_ yeah!" and she giggled despite herself. He was so…amazed, almost like a little kid in a store with all the newest toys, and she felt her irritation beginning to slide away. Damn it. "That's Quidditch—it's kind of like basketball, but on broomsticks. I used to love watching it…"

Jack turned to look at her. Sam's mouth was curved in a reminiscent little smile, the late afternoon sun catching her eyes through the window and sending shattered fragments of gold to glitter in her blue eyes. She continued to speak, unaware of his gaze. "I used to have this tiny little broom, it could only go about two feet off the ground—I would chase Remus on it." Her smile grew bigger, and he had his doubts that Sam was still looking at the field. "So there we were, I was around five years old, Remus was almost four, and I was chasing him around the house on a broom that was barely off the ground, and then our mom came out…oh, I got in so much trouble for that one…"

The words were out before he could stop to think about them. "Why did you leave?"

She turned to look at him sharply, then looked away, and he saw what looked like the beginning of shame on her face as she reached out to trace random patterns on the windowsill. When she spoke the words were hesitant, falling from her mouth slowly and shyly. "In the wizarding world…sometimes, someone will be born to wizarding parents without having the capability to perform magic. They're called Squibs…they can't do spells, or any of the things you need to be able to do to get along in wizarding society, but they grow up there." She sighed once, deeply. "I guess I don't really qualify as a squib, since my father's not a wizard…but I grew up here, surrounded by this. My mother began to suspect that I wasn't a witch when I was about nine, because I never had any accidents…" Jack shot her a quizzical look, and she shrugged. "Accidentally doing magic without controlling it or really being aware of it. It happens to all wizarding kids… But we really found out for sure when I turned eleven and I didn't get the letter." She clarified a moment later. "Every magical child gets a letter inviting them to the closest magical school. For me, the closest was here…you start when you're eleven. I waited for weeks to get my letter, I was so excited. I barely slept…and then it didn't come, and finally it was the first day of the new school year and I still hadn't gotten one. That was it." She fell silent almost abruptly, shrugging a little, and Jack had to fight off the urge to hug her. God…that was cruel. He didn't know much about wizarding culture or what they did, but that was cruel. He couldn't even imagine what it would be like to have lived among the things he had just seen briefly, and then to be suddenly, irreversibly told that you didn't belong, that you couldn't even function the way you'd expected to your whole life…Ah, what the hell. He reached out and slid an arm around her shoulders, and tightened it as she stiffened for a brief moment, then slid closer to him. She could never stay mad at him, and she couldn't even decide if that was a blessing or a curse.

"What happened then?" His voice was softer, and when Sam answered, so was hers. "My mom sent me back to America," she told him, and when he stiffened in shock—How could the woman!—she shook her head. "Don't be mad at her, sir," she told him. "What could she do with me? I obviously didn't belong here any more…it was kinder to integrate me into the muggle world, so I could live my life out there. I was lucky, really," she said in response to his disbelieving look. "I had family I could go to…and I think it was easier, in the long run."

He didn't respond except to pull her closer, so that both his arms rested around her frame and one of her hands lay softly on his chest. He didn't care what she said—if he ever met Sam's mother, the woman was going to get a piece of his mind, and possibly two. "What then?"

"I got used to non-magical culture, started school…I didn't visit Remus until he was a fourth year, and by then I had discovered science." He felt, rather than saw, her smile a little. "That was amazing for me…it was something I could do, anyone could do. It was like…magic, really. Chemistry, physics, being able to do those things, figuring out alien technology, the 'gate…it's like what I always imagined performing spells would feel like."

"You're amazing, you know that?" The words were out of his mouth before he even knew he was thinking them, and he winced as he felt Sam pull a little out of his grip. "Sir?" Another wince, there. Just because he was used to her calling him that didn't mean he liked it, and he hastened to explain himself. "What you did…you took a crap hand and changed it into a great one." He could see her holding back another giggle, and he rolled his eyes. "Oh, fer… Instead of crying over what happened and what you couldn't do, you took what you could do and went with it. You made what you had into something way better than what you wanted. There aren't many people who can do that, Sam." Oh, crap. He could see her face change, her mouth open in a little 'o' of astonishment, and he almost leaned forward before leaning back again, hastily. He almost forgot… Jack risked a glance at Sam and found her looking extremely confused—that didn't happen very often, and he felt himself unconsciously shift to sarcasm. "Can't forget your boyfriend, Major…" But instead of the confusion clearing, to be replaced by guilt or something like it, she continued looking like he was speaking in one of those languages only Daniel could understand. "Um…sir?"

He could feel the beginning of a little voice start chanting _stupid, stupid…_ in his head. "You know…long black hair, skinny, you went shopping with him a couple months ago…"

To his surprise and consternation, she started to laugh, giggles that turned into her almost bending over, gripping the windowsill for support. "Er…Carter? You okay?"

She straightened with obvious difficulty, wiping little tears of mirth from her eyes. "Sorry, sir. It's just…Sirius and I together…" She was off again, and he waited semi-patiently until she took a deep, calming breath. "Sir, he is most definitely _not_ my boyfriend. The idea…he's my brother's best friend. Like a brother to me, too."

And now he felt stupid. Very stupid. But the feeling quickly changed to something decidedly guiltier as she frowned and said slowly, "Sir…how exactly did you know that we were out that day? I can't imagine…" Her face suddenly contorted in disbelief as Jack shuffled his feet like a guilty schoolboy, scratching the back of his head. "We kinda…went after you. About a week after you left…" He suddenly felt the need to defend himself. "We were worried about you! I mean, jeez, Carter! You can't expect us to just go, okay, she's gone, didn't tell us anything or tell _anyone_ where she was going, let's just go with our new teammate now!" He was almost yelling without quite knowing how it had happened, but he had to admit that it felt good to get it out. All the worry, the lost sleep, the horrible feeling of seeing her with that guy…it was all being let out, like the unclogging of a drain. "We had to go to your _brother_ to find out where you were, for chrissakes! You didn't even tell _Hammond_! You could have been dead, for all I knew!"

She was quiet for a minute, and when she spoke, he barely heard her. "I—I'm sorry." And she was. She really was, because…god, she couldn't even imagine how she would feel if he left, and she didn't know where he was. She couldn't imagine.

And now he felt like the crappiest guy alive. "It's okay, Carter…I didn't mean it…" Yes he had. He had meant everything he had just said, even if he had said it a little louder than normal.

"I didn't think," Sam said suddenly. She was looking out the window where the sun now seemed to be setting, casting red and purple across her hair. "I got the letter, and all I could think of was my little brother. He's…sir, he's maybe the most important family I have, and…being here for him wasn't even something I thought about. And…I don't think you could have imagine what it felt like, to get that letter, and find out…what's been happening." And his inquisitive look, she elaborated… "Two of his best friends are dead, and the third is a traitor who's more or less responsible for their death." Jack winced. God. But she wasn't done; "I never…I didn't even…I can't imagine what it must have been like for you…you guys. I apologize, sir." Her voice got even softer. "I—I'm sorry, Jack."

His heart stopped for several seconds. Did she…had she just…She had, and she was turning towards him just as he was turning towards her, arms reaching out as he bent down a little and she stood a little straighter, and all Jack could feel was a sense of wonder and amazement, and awareness of her mouth and body so close to his, and they were coming closer, and—

"Professor Carter? I had a question about the homework…I was wondering if you could explain the origin of the—oh." Hermione stopped dead in her tracks, Harry and Ron coming to an abrupt halt beside her, as Jack and Sam ripped themselves away from each other and she headed to her desk as quickly as she could, her cheeks a brilliant, mortified crimson. She took several deep breaths before she could speak, but when she did her voice was remarkably steady: "Yes, Ms. Granger?"

"Er…should I come back later?"

Sam's voice was a little quicker than it probably should have been. "No, not at all. Everything's fine…what did you need help with?" Jack had to admit, the little part of his brain not replaying what had just happened repeatedly, with a full soundtrack, in Technicolor, was impressed by how quickly she had managed to pull herself together. Not that he didn't have a small urge to run the kids off with appropriately threatening gestures for interrupting, but it wasn't their fault, really… He wasn't aware that he had growled softly until the tall redhead—Ron, he vaguely remembered—who had before been wearing an almost comic expression of despair—had a little crush on his Sam, did he? All amiable thoughts he had had towards these kids were long gone. Well, good he was backing off…wait, since when was she _his_ Sam—edged away from him a little. That's right, back away from the scary guy…keep backing away…right out of the room…

"Ja—sir?" And there was Sam. He looked around a little, but the kids were gone…guess the question had been answered. "Yes, S—Carter?"

"It's almost time for lunch," she told him almost shyly, seemingly unaware of the way a strong hand was twisting the cuff of her long black…robe, was it? –and Jack winced, and steeled himself for what he was about to do. There went what fraternity regs they hadn't already broken out the window…but at the moment, he really didn't care. "Sam." She turned abruptly, and looked at him, startled. "Yes, sir?"

He winced. "It's Jack, okay? Jack and Sam. Not sir, not Major or Carter—just Jack and Sam. Can you do that?"

And there she was surprised again, and Jack was seriously reconsidering the value of this idea…but then her face spread in a beautiful, big smile that lit up her eyes. "Sure, Jack."

* * *

Daniel was halfway down one of the many aisles in the school's library, squatting in front of a shelf and looking at the various titles of the dusty volumes. _How to Catch a Poltergeist in Three Easy _Step; _Mankind: The Relations of Muggles and Magic Throughout History_; _Vampires in the Bronze Age_; _Atlantis: Fact or Fiction?..._ Daniel lifted his eyebrows a little, pulling out the seemingly ancient tome and standing up. As he made his way down the aisle, he opened the front cover carefully; the parchment inside was old and brittle, but it held as the archeologist turned each page and glanced at its contents.

Daniel stopped at the table that held the other books that he had found on previous trips through the stacks. Teal'c was sitting there as well, ignoring the many glances that he received from the few students that were currently in the library, but he looked up as two people walked toward them. "Colonel O'Neill, Major Carter," he said, inclining his head toward them. "It is good to see you."

Sam smiled, "You too Teal'c. And, I just want to say that I'm sorry. I really am. I didn't even think about what I did." She lowered her eyes a little, not quite sure how they would react; but when she looked up, she found Daniel standing in front of her. He was smiling softly and his eyes told her that he had forgiven her. "It's okay, Sam." Daniel opened his arms and she hugged him, glad that he wasn't angry with her. When she let go, she found Teal'c standing and smiling. "We understand, Major Carter."

Sam grinned broadly. "Thank you. Now, it's about lunch time, so Jack and I came down to see if you wanted to grab a bite in the Great Hall."

Daniel blinked. Did she just…yes, she most definitely had. Sam had just called her superior officer Jack. Not 'sir', not 'the Colonel', but Jack. Wow. Did that mean the little talk that they had ha—

Unfortunately, Daniel never got to finish his thought; because, at that moment, a high-pitched shriek sounded throughout the library, Daniel wincing and looking around for the source. He saw Sam look up and try to shout something, and he saw, hovering about fifteen feet in the air, a small, wide-eyed old man. Moments later, the scream subsided and Daniel could hear Sam; "Peeves, _what's the matter_?"

The man pointed an accusing finger at Sam. "I knew it! I told Dumbledore not to trust you! But he didn't listen and now I know that you are one! Because you brought _him_!"

Daniel looked and saw that he was pointing at Teal'c. Sam looked utterly confused. What was he talking about? One what? What was going on? "What are you talking about? Brought who, Peeves?"

The man turned and glared at Sam. "The _Jaffa_."

* * *

FC: #dramatically# Dun dun dun! Who is Peeves? What does he know? Who does he think Sam is? Stay tuned and find out!

Ora: #grins# We _told_ you Peeves would fit in! But I really don't think anyone took us seriously. Well, hah! Victory is OURS!

FC:…breathe, Ora.

Review, please! Because they make me happy…almost as happy as Window of Opportunity. Not quite, but then, nothing much does…


	15. Suicidal Author's Note

Sorry that the next update is taking so long, minna. And, unfortunatly, it will be even longer before the next chapter is out. FC left for Mexico this morning (she had to leave at 4 am #snickers#), and I'm leaving for Wyoming in a couple of hours. FC's gonna be gone about 2 weeks, I'm gonna be gone 3 and neither of us has reliable internet access. Again, I apologize; but if you leave your address I'll send you a post card! ; )

Oralindie


	16. Chapter 12

First of all, I would just like to apologize for my language and deprivation of vocabulary yesterday. I was just kind of upset. And thank you, Haley. Second, we want to apologize for taking so long with this, there is but one excuse I'm sure everyone has dealt with: Life.

So, after a ummm…..whoa…has it really been _six months?_ Sheesh. Sorry. Anyway, here is the twelfth chapter of The Science of Magic!

* * *

Sam's eyes widened. How did he know what Teal'c was? As far as she knew, the school didn't have any records of the Goa'uld, or any other aliens, but that also wouldn't explain how Peeves would know right off the bat! It's not like he could have ever met one, because there would be only two ways that could have happened. One, he was about five thousand years old; or two, he had met Seth. She eyed the man above her. Neither seemed very likely.

And what was that thing with her being 'one'? Being one what? He couldn't mean a squib, because that had nothing to do with Teal'c. But he said that he had warned Dumbledore…maybe a trip to the headmaster's office was in order.

She jumped slightly when she felt Jack scoot over to her and whispered in her ear. "Sam, what the hell is _that_?"

"'That' is Peeves, sir." Jack stopped looking at Peeves and turned toward the major. "One, what is Peeves; and two, what happened to our agreement?"

Sam looked startled. "Wh—oh, right. Sorry, si—Jack." She started to answer Jack's second question, but was interrupted by a seemingly troubled archeologist. "Sam…."

She started to turn around, "Yes, Danie—" and gasped. Daniel was standing about three feet away from Teal'c, the only problem with that was that the big guy wasn't moving. At all. No eye shifting, blinking, not even breathing. Nothing.

Jack stepped forward, "What the hell did he do?" And he didn't know what happened next. One moment it was quiet, and the next thing he knew he was surrounded by students; most of which were screaming and rushing toward the door. Apparently, there were quite a few more students in the library than they had first thought. He turned to the ceiling to look for this 'Peeves', but found it empty of any and all floating…people. Then he turned toward the rest of his team, only to find that they had disappeared in the wild currents that were the students.

A few maddening seconds later, the crowed cleared. Jack found himself in an empty library. "Sam? Daniel? Where are you?"

"Jack!" The colonel turned around and saw Daniel emerge from under one of the tables. "Jack, where's Sam?" He paused and looked about the room. "And where's Teal'c?" Jack whipped around, scanning the library. "Sam? Sam!" _Goddamn it, where is she?_ He turned around to find Daniel heading toward the other end of the vast room, checking rows as he went. Jack soon joined him, starting at the other end of the library. Row after row he saw nothing but empty aisles; all abandoned in some mad rush.

After what seemed like hours to Jack, he met up with Daniel. "Okay they're not in here. So, I guess we go have a talk with this Professor Doorknob guy."

Daniel stared. "Who?"

"The head honcho. He's the old guy who showed up yesterday. The students I found in the library last night told me about him."

"So, how do you expect to get to him? Because, I don't about you, but I haven't quite managed to memorize a map of this place yet."

Oops. That might become a little bit of an issue. But that didn't matter, he had to get Sam back; and he had a nasty suspicion that the disappearance of her and Teal'c had something to do with the disappearance of that floating guy. So, the quicker they told Doorknob, the quicker they found Sam. And Teal'c. Both of them.

But for the immediate problem…."Ask a painting?"

Daniel stared blankly. "You're kidding, right Jack?"

"Um…no."

Daniel stared at him. Jack turned toward the library door and called out behind him. "Come on, Daniel! I thought you were always up for new cultural experiences!"

The archeologist followed after him, muttering under his breath. "Talking to colored pigments is not quite what I had in mind."

But, to Daniel's great, eternal surprise, it actually worked. Of course, it should have been impossible according to all the universal laws (not that Daniel thought they couldn't be broken, after four years working with Sam) to threaten a painting, but somehow Jack managed it—three minutes with the oil on canvas of the woman in a truly ridiculous hat just outside the library and she was running as fast as she could towards, apparently, the headmaster's office—which was Dumbledore, not Doorknob. Daniel had given Jack one of his more scathing looks when he heard that.

"What the hell is this!" Jack yelled when they reached their destination, turning to pin the cowering woman with a fierce glare. "What you asked!" she said back, the purple and putrid-green feathers in the brim of her hat flopping in her eyes, and Jack's glare intensified. Huh. Maybe that was what he'd learned in Black Ops. "I said bring me to the **headmaster**'s office, not a statue of a **gargoyle**!"

"This is his office!" she protested. "You need the password!"

"What the hell am I supposed to do? **Talk **to the frickin' thing?!" Jack stared as the woman firmly nodded her head once, and then threw his hands in the air. "Oh, fer cryin' ou—"

"Jack."

The colonel turned. "What, Daniel?"

"Just try it. Please." His friend gave him a look that was almost pleading. They had to find Sam and Teal'c; fast; and Jack glared, and sighed. "Fine." He turned toward the painted lady. "What's the password." It was really more a demand than a question, but it seemed to work. Kind of.

"I don't know!" The woman flustered, seeming almost offended. "Why would they tell something like that to **me**?"

Jack stared blankly at her. Great. Just great. They finally find the one place where they might get some help, and it turned out that they were stuck! Well, he had gotten into the SGC, so he could get into Doorknob's (Jack liked that name better) office. He turned to face the gargoyle, prepared to inspect every inch of it if he had to. He was going to find Sam.

* * *

Darkness.

That is what Sam remembered most about that place. Complete and total darkness. Even space wasn't this bad; at least there you had stars, planets, and galaxies to see, and you usually weren't there by yourself, floating completely isolated. But there was nothing, and no one, here. Just a black blanket that surrounded her, hugged her, seemed to want to suck even the **memory** of light from her.

She realized that she was laying down, not that it made any difference; for all she knew, the ceiling could be an inch from her head and she wouldn't noticed until she sat up. God, this was so **frustrating**! She was stuck here, with no idea—well, almost no idea—what was going on. What had Peeves meant by 'them'?

And then…she thought about it, thought about it logically—there wasn't anything else to do here. Peeves—and that was a whole other puzzle—had known Teal'c was a jaffa. And there was nothing connecting that and her but…Jolinar. The trace of naquadah still in her system. Which meant that, presumably, Peeves could sense that difference—could feel the naquadah in her and Teal'c—and knew what a Jaffa was and how to tell the difference. And the 'them'—it hit Sam in a flash. A host! He must have thought she was still a host. So how did he know? What connection did Peeves have to the Stargate and the Goa'uld?

* * *

"Damn it, **OPEN**!" Jack yelled at the gargoyle, face set and furious. Sam and Teal'c were god-knew-where and all he could do was try to get the stupid statue to move—and he wasn't even doing well at that, either.

Frustrated, Jack reached into his pocket and chucked the first thing that he could find at the gargoyle, using language that was probably best not repeated. As Jack was using his best Death Glare of Doom on the stone sculpture, Daniel looked down at the small packet on the ground and then back up to the glarer in question. Jack noticed this look and, with an air of annoyance, replied, "What?"

Daniel looked at him in disbelief. "I just never thought you would actually carry it around with you. I mean, come on, Jack. That's a bit much, don't you think?"

The colonel looked at Daniel as if he was diseased and then stated matter-of-factly, "You never know when a box of Jell-O will come in handy."

Danny-boy opened his mouth to retort, but the gargoyle sprung to one side at that moment, revealing a winding spiral staircase behind. Jack smiled. "See," he waved his hand in the direction of the stairs, "told you it'd come in handy." He then promptly picked up the small package and walked forward, with Daniel's Ultimate Death Glare of Impending Doom fixed squarely on his back.

Jack headed up the stairs, eyes narrowed and only a little mollified by the Jell-O incident. He had just been waiting to use that box somehow—he had never guessed that it would be in a weird, supposedly impossible school for magic he had been transported to by the Asgard for a reason he still didn't know, but he wasn't complaining. And this had nothing to with Sam and Teal'c—and, he was at the top of the stairs.

He slammed the door open, ignoring Daniel's protest—the archaeologist was just as eager to find his friends, but was also aware of the fact that pissing off the guy in charge probably wasn't the best way to do it. "Where is she?!" Jack yelled as the heavy wooden door swung open—and blinked, feeling rather stupid, at the empty room. It was round and filled with silvery doohickeys that would have driven Sam nuts trying to figure them out. _Sam…_He had to find her, no matter what.

He and Daniel spread out, peering in the corners and at the laden shelves. They couldn't see anything interesting—well, interesting and understandable—although there was a bird stand with a little dish under it, and a pile of ash. And then—"Jack, look at this!"

He headed over, peering into the cabinet that Daniel had opened. There was a heavy stone basin in there, filled with stuff that was silvery and swirling around and that he had never seen before, and Jack frowned.

"You know what this is?"

"Would I have called you over if I did?" Daniel asked, reasonably, and Jack scowled. "Maybe." He leaned closer to the thing—he could almost see something in the silver colors—and Daniel said warily, "Jack, you probably shouldn't lean so close to that thing, who knows what it could do," but by that time the tip of Jack's nose had touched the stuff and he was falling.

He landed on the ground with a jolt, and groaned. He was getting to old for falling all over the place—and the he realized that he had landed on grass, and whipped his head around. He was on the front lawn of the castle, and it was mid-afternoon—the sun was glittering so brightly against his eyes that he really wished he had his sunglasses. He got to his feet, groaning a little—and then he saw someone, or rather a few people, walking across the grass towards him. They were teenagers, maybe, four boys and a blond girl who was talking with them and laughing, smiling radiantly, and getting closer—and then he saw them up close, and his heart skipped a few beats, and apparently decided that it was too much trouble and stopped altogether. The girl, the teenager in a blue t-shirt that matched her eyes, with long blond hair in a ponytail—it was Sam.

* * *

FC: #sighs happily# Don't you love terrible, confusing cliff hangers?

Ora: #nods# Indeed, they are a wonderful thing.

Readers: #glare and start to gather pitchforks and torches#

Ora: #eyes wide# Um…or not……


	17. Chapter 13

Ora: _Someone_ #glares pointedly at FC# made me go see the _Eragon_ movie that just came out. I mean, I thought the _book_ was bad, but that…it was unforgivable.

FC: Oh, grow up. It wasn't that bad…no, wait, yes it was, but at least I had fun mocking everyone. Was it really necessary to repeat every single catchphrase five times?

* * *

_What the hell is going on here?_ Jack glanced at the surrounding environment, from student to student as they laughed and joked in the late-afternoon sun, and his eyes finally settled back on Sam. Why was she here? She had told him she was a…dammit, what was that word? Squirt…squid…squib! That's what it was. Anyway, she had told him that she couldn't do magic. At all. So what was a magicless girl doing at a school filled with trainee magicians?

And, come to think of it, what was _he_ doing here? That bowl-thing wasn't some sort of mini-stargate, was it? Pocket-sized for easier transportation? If it was a gate, it could explain why he was here, except there wasn't a stargate; not even a miniature one. Which, considering recent events, left one obvious conclusion: magic.

And that meant he had absolutely no idea what to do. But maybe mini-Carter did.

"Hey, C—Sam!" Jack started to walk toward the group, his hand waving in the air.

She continued talking animatedly to the boy with scraggly brown hair, smiling as the black-haired teenager on her other side—who looked a lot like a younger version of the guy he had seen her in London with—threw in a comment. She might have been younger, but that was no reason to completely ignore him…

"Sam!" he called again, standing right in front of her now, and bending down to look her in the eye. She couldn't be not seeing him, he was _right there_…suddenly Jack remembered Daniel talking about when he had touched the crystal skull, how it had been when nobody could see him or hear him, and he cursed. Crap. That would be just his luck…

Tentatively, he waved a hand in front of mini-Sam's face. Nothing, from her or the four boys surrounding her. Great. "So…invisible. And…un-hearable." He paused, because he didn't really—well, hadn't really—touched Sam, as a rule, because of the things it could open up, and this was basically her, just younger, which was worst, and then tapped her shoulder. Or tried to, because his hand just slipped right through her. Damn.

* * *

"So, you're on the Quidditch team?" Mini-Sam was asking the kid with messy black hair and glasses as the five of them—her, her brother (Jack was assuming one of them was), and the other three boys—leaned against the walls of one of the towers. Jack had been following them—well, technically he had been walking next to them and giving them all his best protective-father glare, but since he was invisible the look could be having more success—for almost two hours now as they walked around the castle, getting what seemed like the grand tour—the four boys knew an incredible number of hidden rooms, and were making a gleeful point of displaying their cleverness. Jack thought he would have gotten along with them pretty well when he was a kid—hell, he'd probably get along with them great now.

"Yep," the boy said with distinct pride. "Best seeker in Hogwarts history."

"He's lying out his arse," the other black haired boy—his was longer, and more shaggy—said, rolling his eyes. "Last practice he fell off his broom."

"To be fair, that was because he had just noticed Evans sitting on the stands," the taller boy with brown hair said with a slight—sly, maybe—smile, and the shortest of the four snorted with laughter.

"Shut up," the seeker said, reaching around Sam deftly to swat the boy who had made the comment on the head, who ducked.

Sam grinned and tilled her head back to gaze at the clouds. Her grin faltered slightly as she saw the sun. "Um…shouldn't we get going now? I mean, it's getting kind of late. And with…you know."

The black haired boy with the glasses nodded, and pushed off the ground with a sigh. "Yeah," his face split into a mischievous smile. "Let's just show her the Hogsmeade passage first."

The boy with brown hair frowned from his place on the ground. "James, I don't think—"

"Oh, come on, Remus. There's plenty of time!" the grinning, shaggy haired boy interrupted. He jumped off the ground and leaped the other boy's—James—side. "Besides, I'm sure Sam's not the only one who would want the chocolate."

As Sam glanced curiously at her two grinning friends, Jack sighed and laid his head back against the tree he was leaning against. It had been fine for the first hour or so, seeing new parts of the castle, laughing at young Sam and her friends, but after God knows how many hours, it was getting to be too much for him. At this point he felt like he was more likely for him to gain enlightenment and become a glowing jellyfish, than it was for him to get back to the future and his grown-up Sam.

"As much as I'd like to, guys, Remus is right. We should head back to the castle and um…" she turned her head to the tall boy sitting next to her, "What _do_ you do here, anyway?"

Jack watched as two boys—Sirius and James—exchanged nervous glances and the short, mousy boy's eyes widened. Remus' eyes turned away from the group and he dropped his head before looking back at Sam. "That's not important. Just know that you're safe."

"Remus—"

"Sam!" he snapped harshly, then his face softened in apology. "Please; don't ask me any more."

Jack saw Sam's eyes narrow in suspicion as she calculated the risk. Apparently deciding that it wasn't worth it, she nodded sharply. "Fine. I'll wait."

Uh-huh. And Daniel was Apophis' best friend.

* * *

Remus, Sirius, James, and Peter left Sam in her room, promising to come back in the morning. Knowing that something was going on between them, Sam waited until she could barely hear their footsteps, and then stepped out into the hall to follow them.

The empty corridor was cold and only dimly lit by the torches lining the walls. There were no windows, so she was obviously somewhere in the middle of the castle. Thanking God for her memory, she made her way back to the entrance of the castle. She stopped right before turning a corner that would bring her into the Entrance Hall. There was the faint sound of muffled feet, then a dull thud as a door shut. Deciding that it was safe, Sam looked around the corner cautiously, but could not see anyone or anything. Darting over to the doors, she pulled at one until it gave some, letting her slip through. One out side, she closed the door as quietly was she could and slipped down the steps.

With the full moon about to rise, the grounds were illuminated and she was able to scan the area around her, looking for any sign of the boys. Spotting four figures moving around the edge of the castle to her left, she sprinted in that direction, hoping to catch up to them before they left her line of sight and disappeared. As she drew closer, she heard a shout.

"Shit! Prongs, watch out!"

Sam looked on in horror as her brother turned and snarled at one of the figures. The light of a rising full-moon illuminating his gray fur as he ran off into the forest.

"James, Sirius, Peter, are you alright?"

The three Marauders turned toward her as she rushed up to them. "He didn't bite you, did he?"

James grabbed her shoulders and harshly spit out "Sam, what the _bloody hell_ are you doing out here? You could have been hurt!" Sam's look hardened as she stared him in the eyes. "That's why I'm here; I wasn't sure you knew what you were dealing with."

Sirius walked over to them, running his hand through his hair. "We've got to go after him. We can't let him get anywhere near Hogsmeade." James nodded slightly and spoke to Sam. "Go back to the castle now. We'll deal with this."

Sam held his glare. "No. He's my brother; I'm going to help."

"Dammit, Sam! I swear I'll hex you if you don't go now!"

"No you won't. That would leave me even more vulnerable. I'm going to go and you can't stop me."

Sirius growled in frustration and turned away. "Come on. We've already wasted enough time."

James jerked his head in acknowledgment. "Sam, stay with me." She nodded and followed as they headed toward the woods.

"Crap!" Jack muttered under his breathe, dogging the boys and Sam as they jogged away. It was just like Carter to go do something stupid like follow an animal that was obviously dangerous into a forest that just screamed, 'Oh, evil danger ahead'. If those kids let anything happen to her, anything at all…

There was a yelp from the trees, and they quickened their pace, the boy with glasses turning to say something to Sam and her eyes widening. Jack sped up, ducking around a low-hanging branch as the little group, and him, entered the beginnings of the forest. There was some kind of fog up ahead, he saw, thick and murky and obscuring vision.

"Come on, Sam, don't go in there…" he muttered. God, he felt so _helpless_…and then the kids, Sam included, were swallowed up by the murky mist. Jack shook his head, completely ignoring the hypocrisy of being pissed at Carter for doing something stupid, considering his track record—and then there was a sudden, strong jolt that sent his head—his entire body, actually—flying back so the he landed ass-up on the ground. "Shit!"

Jack scrambled back up. There was nothing there, no wall, no barrier—he stretched out a hand, and it smacked into the mist and stopped. He had seen Carter and the other go through—but he couldn't.

* * *

An hour and a half later, Jack was seriously frustrated. And worried. All in all, actually, he was in a really crappy mood. It was probably for the best his team wasn't there…he would have driven them well and truly up the proverbial wall ages ago.

It was just so damn _quiet_! He had walked for ages, one hand on the barrier, looking for a way through—nothing. Eventually, Jack had decided that it was better to wait in case Sam came back out, and that was what he had been doing. Waiting. First standing, then leaning against one of the trees, and now plopped on the ground, head against a trunk. Damn. Damn. Damn…

There was a scream from inside the barrier, high and undeniably female, and Jack was up faster than…than something that was really not in the mood for clichéd metaphors. Sam…the barrier was there, just as impenetrable as ever even though he could hear another yelp, one that sounded like a dog, and then hear the sounds of someone running, fast. He leaned closer, ear almost against the fog, listening desperately for a sign, a clue—and then the younger version of Sam came out of the barrier almost through him, looking scratched and muddy and very much the worse for wear, panic written all over her face. On her heels was a stag, which would have merited a lot more consideration if anyone other than Sam was in trouble, dogging her heels and almost seeming to glance behind them, as much as a stag could turn around and glance.

Instinct had Jack running after her, making sure that his 2IC was going to be okay. The trees quickly gave way to the field and Jack heard something running behind them. Sparing a quick glance, he saw two things: a rather large, black dog and the same animal that they had chased into the forest. It was roughly dog-like, but it wasn't any dog that Jack had ever seen before. It was big and lanky, but had remarkable control of its long limbs. It was gaining ground fast, taking large bounding leaps across the open ground. If they didn't find any shelter soon… He forced that train of thought to stop. It wasn't like he could do anything about it. As he leapt over a rock, he felt ice run through his veins as the creature howled. The only thing that was keeping him sane was the fact that he _knew_ that Sam would survive. He _knew_ that she would make it past this night. She would live, and that left a small warm spot of hope inside of him.

* * *

Hey, this is Oralindie. I really hate to do this to all of you, but I have some bad news. This will probably be the last chapter of SoM for a long while. FC has realized that in order to get into any of the colleges she wants to, she has to get her grades up. Which means she has to stop doing something. And seeing that fanfiction takes up a lot of her time (what she actually has posted is about 5 percent of what she's actually written) and that she needs to stop for awhile. We're really sorry, but it can't be helped.

Thank you to everyone who has reviewed and helped us get this far!


End file.
